Tic-tock, tic-tock,
Another minute.
Another wasted moment in it.
A breath, a flinch,
And then it’s finished.

Tic-tock, tic-tock,
And life just passes.
A mess of work, and sleep, and classes,
Brief tumble through
The whirling masses

Tic-tock, tic-tock…
We chase the ending
Some wavering and some unbending
But each one lost
And all pretending

Tic-tock, tic-tock
Where are we going?
We plummet onward, never knowing
Just why we run
Or when we’re slowing.

Tic-tock, tic-tock,
We hear the clicking,
The pain of age comes to us, pricking
Don’t think, run on,
The Clock is ticking.

– s. Clark