Time flies never to be recalled.

The words of Virgil, poet of Rome and singer of epic destiny, are carved like eternal stone: “Time flies never to be recalled.” In this short utterance, the poet captures the most inexorable of truths—that time, once gone, cannot be summoned back. The hours slip like arrows released from the bow; they soar into the distance, beyond reach, beyond memory’s grasp. What is lost in time is lost forever, and no pleading voice nor mighty empire can command its return.

The meaning is solemn yet awakening. To say that time flies is to remind us of its swiftness, its unceasing motion. To say it is never to be recalled is to warn us that it is final. Wealth may be restored, kingdoms may be rebuilt, even broken hearts may heal—but the wasted moment is gone for eternity. Virgil’s wisdom calls us to live with urgency, to treat each day as sacred, lest we awaken one morning to discover that the river of our life has carried away all our chances.

The origin of these words rests in Virgil’s role as the voice of Rome’s grandeur and fragility. In the Georgics and the Aeneid, he reflected on both the fertility of the earth and the fleeting nature of glory. He knew that even the mightiest city, even the hero Aeneas himself, was subject to the laws of time. His phrase is not simply poetic—it is a Roman’s recognition that destiny waits for no man, and that opportunity delayed is opportunity destroyed.

History illustrates this lesson with brutal clarity. Consider Alexander the Great, who conquered the known world before the age of thirty. His empire stretched farther than the imagination of his age. Yet he died young, and all his conquests were divided, lost to time. His ambition shows the swiftness of opportunity seized—but also the impossibility of holding back time’s hand. No power, no sword, no crown can stop its flight.

The deeper teaching is this: time is the most precious of all treasures, for it alone cannot be renewed. We are misled when we act as if our hours are countless, when in truth they are few and fleeting. Virgil’s words are not only a lament but a summons—to act now, to speak now, to love now, to create now. For tomorrow is not promised, and yesterday is forever beyond recall.

The lesson for you, seeker, is to live with intention. Do not squander hours in resentment, in idleness, in fear of failure. Better to stumble forward in boldness than to sit in safety while time escapes. When you hesitate, time does not wait with you; it departs. When you act, you ride with time’s motion and carve your deeds upon the flow of eternity.

Practical actions follow from this wisdom. Rise each morning with a plan for how you will use the gift of the day. Give your time to what nourishes your soul and strengthens others, not to trifles that vanish like smoke. Mark your progress, cherish your moments with loved ones, and dare to pursue what your heart burns to achieve. Always remember Virgil’s warning: what is lost in time is lost forever.

So remember, children of tomorrow: time flies never to be recalled. Do not waste its wings, for once they have carried the hour away, it will never return. Live with urgency, live with courage, live with love. In this way, though you cannot call back time, you can fill its flight with deeds so bright that they will shine in memory long after the hours themselves have gone.