Time Is Nothing: A Gogyohka Sequence

for W. G. Sebald

I awake
eat, read, write, and sleep
the Mondays of present
follow the rhythm
of the Sundays of past

walled-in room
a clutter of books
a coffee-stained desk
stacks of returned mail
a mind unrested

the clock ticked
the sun rose and set
but in the shadows
Time does not pass
though the clock ticks

on any Monday or Sunday
I’m on the lam
crossing continents
sailing the Pacific
beyond Time’s grasp

drifting in a dream
turned into a bird
flying over the Pacific
I open my eyes
upon darkness again

pondering
who is this
thief drifting
in and out of windows
slain by the clock

July/August 2010 issue of Sketchbook