Past, Present and Future

"Burnt Norton"

I love the way this poem begins

 

“Time Presents and time past

Are both perhaps present in time future,

And time future contained in time past”.

As the minutes and days pass, it turns into the past and all we have are the moments we are in at this very moment and the future.  We need to focus on the present moment because the present turns into the past and “All time is unredeemable”. 

“Footfalls echo in the memory

Down the passage which we did not take”

This part reminds me of Frost’s poem “The Road Not Taken”.  We have had many times in our lives, more than we can count where we have taken different passages that had changed the lives we live now.

The last lines are perfect and well said,

“Time past and time future

What might have been and what has been

Point to one end, which is always present”

We have a past and a future but we will always be stuck in the present.    

Reading about time and how precious it is in our lives was an eye opener.  It is true we should live life to the fullest we can make it because we would look at time negatively and say we are prisoners to the ticking clock because we will forever be forced to move forward in time to have a past and future so make it the best it can be. 

I wonder however, what the nature and the rest of the poem are saying.  I will not be in class and I wish I could hear the thoughts on this poem and The Wasteland.  They are good poems but I’m lost in a lot of areas.