10 Seconds of Forever

In the tenth second of forever,

I thought of the sea and a white yacht drifting...

In the ninth second of forever,

I thought of a leaf, a stone,

The plastic fragment of a child's toy...

In the eighth second of forever,

I remembered a warm room where voices played...

In the seventh second of forever,

I thought of the life I would not lead...

In the sixth second of forever,

I saw your mouth whispering something I could hear...

In the fifth second of forever,

I thought of the vermilion deserts of Mars,

The jewelled forests of Venus...

In the fourth second of forever,

I could remember nothing that I did not love...

In the third second of forever,

I thought of rain against a window, I thought of the wind...

In the second second of forever,

I thought of the pair of broken shades lying on the tarmac...

In the first and final second of forever,

I thought of the long past that had led to now,

And never... never... never... never...