Consequence

You have brought to me,

The mirror

With its clear glass silvered

And bordered in gold,

I shall recite the magic words,

To bring it alive

To show us our past

And the unknown future,

Unlike the ordinary ones

This mirror will not lie.

Let me look at my past,

There I am a well-dressed lad,

Off to college

When I was young, I smiled a lot,

I was proud of my appearance,

And hopeful of the future.

When I peeped into the future

I appeared very old and lifeless,

Friendless, alone and unhappy.

The mirror tells me

That Time which is supreme

Extracts its price,

Cuts short our lives;

Whatever we do, achieve or earn

Is meaningless,

Our ill-reputation or fame

Does not affect us after death,

Then perforce I ask –

Why do we live at all?