The Silver Clock

[Blackdrakon30 2,943]

The Silver Clock

 

My silver colored clock is ticking. My phone charging. Someday the phone will die. Thinking too much is the greatest strength anyone could have, despite it also becoming their greatest weakness. Some days we need to run our race hard, like we want to win. The road is not an easy one. You must shape your phrases like you mean them. Every single hour in history is hinged on the words “I am….”, “Let’s make….” or “Let there be….”. The latter brings the basic forms into existence, and its partner alters them. The most powerful words in the universe are “I Am”. It is the epitome of thought. We may be silent, but when these words are spoken the matter of reality is shifted. It precedes every mighty decision of our lives, it changes who everyone is, and chooses how we impact others.

 

One day I was seven. Then I was eight. Then I was nine. Suddenly I am older. The silver clock began ticking as I discovered that time could not be regained. The world quickly turned from an opportunity into a desert, and then back once more. The clock sounded again. It let me know that I was aging, just a small reminder that eventually I will run out of battery. The clock sounded again. My eyes dart to the start of the stars and they were bigger than ever before. Obviously I was misinformed that things become small as I get tall and older. The clock ticked again. My hands grew weary from holding on, and I considered the fall. It would be so simple, so easy. Would anyone notice? Would anyone care? Would anyone plug my phone back in? Would the silver colored clock keep working without me? These thoughts were driftwood in my head, just spare pieces of something bigger than me. Out of the void, a voice of might gave me an insight that was just right to change my view and once again restart time. I felt these words, and they spoke of indescribable love. “I am yours, and you are mine,” the voice declared. Ice clattered through my spine and I knew that the clock wasn’t over yet. Those words shook my core more than anything ever could in the future.

 

Perhaps I can build a boat.

 

Two days I was 15. Things happen too fast. Perhaps we need a speed bump to detain movement. I’m not sure what speed will attain. The clock is still ticking. The stars are bigger than ever, and I can see forever within the water of a river. The water is the perfect size for a small boat, but I have to build one first. I’m currently too occupied since I think my phone might run out of battery soon. I need to keep an eye on it or it might drift away underneath my eyesight.

 

Three days I was 16. New truths reveal every day, as numerous as sand in the desert. Maybe I thought wrong for two days. The clock slipped my attention, and my phone is usually on low charge. The boat is yet to enter the river, and yet to enter construction. When will my life be free of obstruction? Maybe we need to notice things besides the passing cars in order to see the world. I was too busy wondering if my phone charge would drift away to be able to build my driftwood ship. I remember the voice that poured ice down the back of my shirt. He wants me to go somewhere, in the boat. The silver colored clock is still ticking, but I am afraid that if I leave on the boat it may stop ticking before I realize the passing time. When did these doubts and weaknesses weasel into my world? They don’t belong, and they don’t leave when told. The stars are still overhead, and the same moon that I looked upon the night of New Year's Eve 9 years ago floats above me. It reminds me of how we are blown around but that doesn’t mean we can’t get back up. I wish I could instruct my 9 years ago self with these words.

 

“Soon you will realize time isn’t a renewable resource. That little silver clock will keep ticking, but only for so long. Keep your mind off the time and the pain. It may seem to prevent you from being late, or from missing events, but it will drive you insane. Be alive while you have life. You may feel like you need to be great. You may feel like you aren’t good enough. You will soon ask if anyone would notice if you were gone. Think on this: Would you rather have your great deeds appreciated and internalized by those who knew you slight, or would you rather have your slight deeds appreciated and internalized by those who knew you great?”

 

Some days the clock ticks faster. It scares me. That is when some thoughts rush through my head. “Oh dear, I’m being controlled by my fear, the night draws near and the light is starting to drift away for good so I’m going to say that we need to bite and get the work done while we can before the light’s out of sight.”

 

I’m being contrite, don’t fight don’t pretend you don’t hear don’t turn a deaf ear you know that I’m right. Look around while you can and be thankful. Don’t take people or anything for granted, because before you know it a phone battery could die or a clock could stop ticking.

 

I suppose there is no reason for these lines to rhyme, but I don’t have time, I want to eliminate the objects that block but I’m constantly haunted by the clock. The silver clock keeps ticking. My mind often climbs in verse when I don’t have a while. Perhaps my thoughts move faster in that style, to deal with the slipping moments.

 

Everything you have has been gained through sacrifice of another. Do not waste their gifts. Be aware of the silver colored clock, but do not obsess. If you are reading this, don’t feel stress, your clock is still ticking, and you have time. Use it wisely.

 

---

Behind the Scenes

Thoughts like these have been bouncing around in my head for the longest time. Time is something that we have to make choices with, because we only have so much of it. I hope that these words are able to touch the hearts of the intended people. It all started one night when I realized that eventually I will be old, and that dying no longer seemed like a far-off myth. My life is about to change in some major ways, when i go off to college in a few years, and that is something that started a pattern in my mind. Thinking too much. Thinking too deep. Sometimes we learn things about ourselves by doing this though, things that cannot be learned any other way. Some might say I struggle with depression, suicidal urges, or that I am insane based off these writings. Anyone who knows me would know I have no issues with depression. Laughter is a common occurrence in my heart and soul. I struggled with finding meaning for a long time, and I was saved by a certain voice. Now I tackle it as a tough issue, and try to open some eyes. As for the last part, I could be insane. I'm not sure it would even be a bad thing if I was.
I appreciate critiques about writing style, or thoughts about the writing and what it says, but there is no need for critiques about the content of the writing itself. You can post thoughts about what I wrote, but these thoughts are mine and you cannot really say that they are flat out right or wrong.
I have no idea if this is a story, a speech, a piece of poetry, a piece of a rap song, a reflection, or a collection of scattered thoughts. I think it is a combination of all the mentioned possibilities. It is all based upon everything in my life, starting from the special moment when I was seven and realized that the current year would never return. It goes until now, although the story isn't over. After all, my silver clock is still ticking.

 

The clock is still ticking, choose wisely

 

 

Edited December 11, 2016 by Blackdrakon30

[TriNitroToIuene 4,765]

~Fixed the issue with the spoilers.

 

Well done, excellent philosophy! I love the way your writing style progresses, literally staccatoed with full stops. A deep, reflective read. Awesome! ^_^

[Yisroel.Rabin 16,224]

As always, I'm lovin' your work. Despite it simply being a great peice, I like how you can go deep without sounding depressing :lol: 

[Penguin40 1,714]

Oww, great but I can't read philosophy like that, my mind doesn't allow that, overall nice job!

[Blackdrakon30 2,943]

Oww, great but I can't read philosophy like that, my mind doesn't allow that, overall nice job!

Thanks, and I totally understand that as a personal preference. Something I do that helps for big philosophy-ish things is to figure out the theme of the piece, and then I use the theme as a "lense" to read the rest of the composition. 

[Blackdrakon30 2,943]

As always, I'm lovin' your work. Despite it simply being a great peice, I like how you can go deep without sounding depressing :lol:

Oh and thanks, I try. 

 

By the way, as a preview for future pieces, I'm writing a guide.  :ph34r:  :ph34r:  :ph34r:  :ph34r:  :ph34r:  :ph34r:  :ph34r:

It is a guide like a guide has never been b4. Keep your eyes peeled.  ;)

[BLASTER872 1,892]

I'm so dumb I can't understand what you mean XD

 

Well, obviously, I get the basic gist, but not much.

[Blackdrakon30 2,943]

I'm so dumb I can't understand what you mean XD

 

Well, obviously, I get the basic gist, but not much.

I mean, it's all just metaphors, motifs, and themes. Also, don't call yourself dumb. That never gets anyone anywhere in life.  ;)

 

For all those who want to just know what the heck I'm talking about in this article:

• The Silver Clock is both a physical object, aka my actual silver-colored clock, and a metaphor. Silver is a precious material, and a clock represents time. Every mention of the "silver colored clock" is referring to the passage of precious time.
• The Phone battery is a metaphor for our lives. We always try and stay charged up, and some people hold their phones so dearly that they wouldn't have a "life" without it. In this case, I treat that literally. Whenever I speak of a phone or a battery, I am referring to death and/or lifespans.
• A desert is referring to a barren wasteland, where there doesn't seem to be an chances to get anywhere or accomplish anything. 
• A Boat refers to the idea of needing to accomplish something, and needing to get somewhere, among other things. This is probably the most loose metaphor of the bunch. It is a boat built out of the "driftwood thoughts", and is essentially saying "I am trying to get somewhere based off scattered thoughts." There are a million other ways to interpret the phrases referring to boats that can't really be described very well by me.
• The Voice is a literal Voice. The ice parts refer to both that ice is something that is startling and awakening when you touch it, and also I physically shivered when I was spoken to. Kinda like the hyperactivity chills.
• Everything else holds meaning depending on the reader and is up for you to interpret.

​Yes, the topics being discussed in this piece are quite deep. In short, I am mulling over the passage of time and the thoughts of dying.

Edited October 22, 2016 by Blackdrakon30

[BLASTER872 1,892]

^ Hmm, ok. Death I am not afraid of. Time wasted I am.

[DragonOfStorms 2,706]

I like the way you look at a difficult subject, a deep subject, with well thought out metaphors. A very philosophical post, well done!

Edited October 6, 2016 by DragonOfStorms

[Ninja 10,468]

Judging on the comments welk done, but personally I don't enjoy first person stories.

 

I prefer third person as I can immerse myself much more in to it.

[Blackdrakon30 2,943]

Judging on the comments welk done, but personally I don't enjoy first person stories.

 

I prefer third person as I can immerse myself much more in to it.

That's mildly ironic.  :P

 

Its not just a story. Its more of an.... account. It's supposed to tell you something. It would be a story if I assigned a character to the role, but then it would fail to convey its real meaning. Thanks for the feedback though.

[Blackdrakon30 2,943]

I like the way you look at a difficult subject, a deep subject, with well thought out metaphors. A very philosophical post, well done!

Thanks! I would have gone with some more abstract metaphors, but I wanted some that were more easily relate-able. I personally find that the more one reads about thoughts the more you see within them and the more meaning you gain, but I had to keep it simpler here because (1) Not many people here want to actually reread it enough to catch any meaning and (2), I don't know if our AWC group here is extremely experienced with subtly since we always do articles and guides that are very literal. 

 

---

(Not related to post by DoS) The more you read, the more you actually see what I am saying. This isn't a mere surface thing that you catch by reading once.

Edited October 6, 2016 by Blackdrakon30

[Viking4s 10,791]

Really good, lots of ideas. A really nice style.

I had to use the dictionary though. ;)

[Ninja 10,468]

Dang, I actually read it now, its weird, certainly not what I would expect on the Tanki forum. Creepy.

[Blackdrakon30 2,943]

Dang, I actually read it now, its weird, certainly not what I would expect on the Tanki forum. Creepy.

:P  Someone has to bring out the writing with actual thoughts. 

[KillerGnat 3,135]

Oh my, too deep, please stop thinking. ;)

 

 

Amazing, Drak. Article of the month so far. Love philosophical pieces. Btw, you should read Ecclesiastes :ph34r:. Kinda depressing at times, but cool. Gives some insight on a few interesting points.

[Blackdrakon30 2,943]

Oh my, too deep, please stop thinking. ;)

 

 

Amazing, Drak. Article of the month so far. Love philosophical pieces. Btw, you should read Ecclesiastes :ph34r:. Kinda depressing at times, but cool. Gives some insight on a few interesting points.

Late responses ftw. I wasn't going to "bump" this again but ur post....

 

:ph34r: I swear that song was one of my favorite things after I wrote this. Still is my favorite song now. I'll take your're readying advice into hand; I've read the whole hog twice so far.  :P

[basenji7 1,199]

Good job, Drakon. Very well written  :D

 

Btw, you should read Ecclesiastes :ph34r:. Kinda depressing at times, but cool. Gives some insight on a few interesting points.

:lol:

 

"Meaningless, meaningless!

Says the Teacher

Utterly meaningless!

Everything is meaningless."

[Blackdrakon30 2,943]

Good job, Drakon. Very well written  :D

 

:lol:

 

"Meaningless, meaningless!

Says the Teacher

Utterly meaningless!

Everything is meaningless."

lmao I've gotten that vibe from it before too.  :P

[TTK_229 1,080]

Cheerwine for you.

Good job, Drakon. Very well written  :D

 

 

:lol:

 

"Meaningless, meaningless!

Says the Teacher

Utterly meaningless!

Everything is meaningless."

I forget where that is from...but I know it somewhere.

*reads Gnat's post* *reads the Bible*

K thx bye see you on Sunday

[Tankbuster89_EN 11]

Great article, nice work i did have a tough time understanding it, (dont judge me) but well written and it has a deep meaning which makes us reflect on what we are doing with our lives. nice work i got interested to read as it was different from other articles which are just about the game and nothing else which is quite boring (no offence) i hope to see more work like this was from you

[Blackdrakon30 2,943]

Great article, nice work i did have a tough time understanding it, (dont judge me) but well written and it has a deep meaning which makes us reflect on what we are doing with our lives. nice work i got interested to read as it was different from other articles which are just about the game and nothing else which is quite boring (no offence) i hope to see more work like this was from you

Thanks! I'm going on a brief detour from my usual philosophical writing while working on a guide, and then y'all can look forwards to some more poetry, thoughts, and quite possibly.... a sneak preview of a story I'm working on.  :ph34r:

 

I also might be joining my Highschool's poetry slam team, and if I do, perhaps some leftovers of nice poems that I didn't end up using will be posted in AWC.  :P

Edited November 8, 2016 by Blackdrakon30