Hands of Time

Someone asked me to pen some lines on time,
so I looked at a picture of Big Ben;
it was a picture so it would not chime,
yet since I saw his face I knew the when.

Both hands were clearly pointed at the one--
the light of day allowed my tree-limb hunch;
and whether or not tea was due or done,
I noticed both Ben’s hands appeared to scrunch.

Of course, his hands were free and did not squeeze,
as in a clock or watch they will go by;
time ticks along with its unending ease,
yet in a picture time is free to lie.

  I saw the hands of Ben completely still,
  but I know time adheres and always will.


(Big Ben is a famous clock in the
Palace of Westminster in London.)