Time's A Thief

by Rohan Gupta
(Delhi, India)

With stealthy fingers

hidden in the shadows

It steals minute after minute

from under our blistered feet

Leaving us behind in the dark

no clues as to when we'll end up

But the tickling if the clocks

speaks to our imaginations

It's no wonder why we run

no mystery why we flee

Even I am often worried

about time catching up with me

Those fingers show up in my nightmares

grabbing me by the ankles, tripping me up

I've seen what it can do

So in cold sweat, I'm waking up

while words can be scarring

they are no match for the time

For when it's not healing

it can leave a lasting burn

But the worst of all?

We lost the clue

Burying it next to our happiness

all those years ago

So I resigned myself to waiting

ever so patiently

Until the lines, one by one,

are all drawn upon my face

That time I will spend crafting

something to outlast me

And in this ink and paper

I will find my immortality.