I love to compare different time frames. Poetry can evoke the

“I love to compare different time frames. Poetry can evoke the time of the subject. By a very careful choice of words you can evoke an era, completely throw the poem into a different time scale.” So speaks Robert Morgan, whose voice reminds us that poetry is not only song but also a vessel of time. In this saying, he reveals the great power of words: they do not merely describe the present, they call forth the past, they foreshadow the future, they transport the soul across centuries. Poetry is not bound by clocks or calendars—it weaves all eras into one eternal tapestry.

The meaning of this wisdom lies in the truth that time is fluid when touched by poetry. A poem can carry us to the dawn of creation or to the yet-unlived days of tomorrow. A single word—ancient, archaic, or modern—can shift the atmosphere, turning a moment of today into a memory of yesterday. Thus the poet becomes not only an artist of images, but a keeper of eras, evoking with precision the feeling of a vanished age or the anticipation of what is to come. Through the alchemy of words, time itself bends.

Consider the story of Shakespeare, who with the flick of a quill could summon Rome, Athens, or the medieval castles of Britain. In his Julius Caesar, he evoked the breath of ancient Rome though he lived in Elizabethan England. Audiences felt themselves hurled back into the Senate of Rome, though the actors wore costumes of their own day. Shakespeare’s mastery lay in choosing words that carried the weight of an era, bridging centuries. Thus Morgan’s insight is confirmed: poetry is a gate through which one may pass into another time scale.

The ancients also knew this power. Think of Homer, whose epics preserved the Bronze Age for those who lived in the Iron Age. His choice of words, his rhythm, his formulaic phrases, carried echoes of battles long past, yet alive in the hearts of listeners. Homer did not merely tell stories; he transported his audience into the time frame of heroes, when gods walked among men. Without poetry, that age might have been forgotten; with it, the era endures eternally.

This truth reveals a lesson for all who live in our own hurried age. Many believe that time is fixed, that the past is gone and the future uncertain. But through the careful shaping of language, we can touch both. A grandmother telling stories to her grandchild uses words that make the past present. A visionary writing verses of hope can pull the future into today. To honor words is to honor our power over time itself.

And so, let us practice this art. Choose words with care, as a mason selects stones. When you speak of your ancestors, do not speak only in facts—let your words paint the colors of their world, the sound of their songs, the struggles of their days. When you dream of what is to come, let your words shape the vision with clarity, so that others may see tomorrow shining before them. Poetry is not only for poets; it is for all who seek to evoke an era and carry its wisdom into the present.

The practical teaching is this: cultivate awareness of how language shapes your sense of time. Read the verses of the ancients to step into their worlds. Write your own lines, even simple ones, to carry forward the spirit of your time. In letters, journals, or conversations, choose words that connect you not only to your moment, but to the long thread of history. For when you learn to wield words in this way, you will no longer be bound by hours and days—you will walk across centuries with ease.

Thus, let us remember Robert Morgan’s insight: through poetry we are not prisoners of time, but voyagers across its seas. The poet’s craft is a vessel, and the words are sails. By them, we can drift into forgotten ages or sail toward the horizon of the future. This is the ancient power of poetry, a power given not only to the few, but to all who dare to listen deeply and choose words with care.