If I Could Tell You by W.H. Auden
Вставка
- Опубліковано 24 чер 2022
- Music: Jóhann Jóhannsson - Flight From The City
Speaker: Tom O' Bedlam (SpokenVerse)
Full poem:
Time will say nothing but I told you so,
Time only knows the price we have to pay;
If I could tell you I would let you know.
If we should weep when clowns put on their show,
If we should stumble when musicians play,
Time will say nothing but I told you so.
There are no fortunes to be told, although,
Because I love you more than I can say,
If I could tell you I would let you know.
The winds must come from somewhere when they blow,
There must be reasons why the leaves decay;
Time will say nothing but I told you so.
Perhaps the roses really want to grow,
The vision seriously intends to stay;
If I could tell you I would let you know.
Suppose all the lions get up and go,
And all the brooks and soldiers run away;
Will time say nothing but I told you so?
If I could tell you I would let you know.
Video: All royalty free video from from pexels.com
#WHAuden #IfICouldTellYou
"In the end, the whole of life becomes an act of letting go. What always hurts the most is not taking a moment to say goodbye."
And time will tell you I told you so
@@gosuhenke most definitely, yes.
amazing...
This is too good created ua-cam.com/video/-P2b8sK876c/v-deo.htmlsi=-IEM_CgdcQl4uH7Y
Yes.
For a longer time than you would believe and from a place further than you could comprehend, a gaze has been fixed upon you. The mandate to observe, keeping you on the path set by your natural evolution. The task made difficult by emotional attachment...
Your comment is poetry
What?
Of course I am attached that's what makes us human. I was attached first to my mother, then my sister and brothers as a family. My father was always away working but a cord attached us too as he watched the waves from the rig. I've been attached to my lovers and briefly in hatred to my enemies. Art flows from our attachments or you can show the white page and see how many will attach to you. My moneys on the colours kid.
Beautifully... quietly...fade smiling as always so very breathtaking to beheld or never to hold..
Soon I must depart to search for some lost friends but I hope to return one day. I hope you make it.
This poem is for my last days on this beautiful planet so hauntingly beautiful
If u want truly hauntingly beautiful, watch the haunting of Bly manor
@@sunshineb7006 thank you
I hope you’re still here
And so hauntingly sad…
❤😢
I miss you more than I ever thought possible, Daddy. It’s been 623 days without you and I miss you every second of every day. I wish I could hear you say, “I love you more” one last time.
I'm really sorry for your loss, regardless of time.
😢
God bless you .
I could only imagine.
I’m a daddy
Peace be with you
Im a daddy and I’m sure yours loved you more than you will ever know.
I'm so sorry...... My condolences.
Losing a loved one is so hard, I feel your pain Steph.
I Lost my father too, when quite young, 740,000 days ago - but never forgotten.
I think that the most heartbreaking are the words you wish you had said to a loved one and did not do so before they passed....💔😢
Hi, i know of people that have made amends at gravesites of loved ones. Something to think about for you and i have heard that they walked away with some kind of knowing that their loved one herd them. Peace to you.
@@MultiHairypotter This is nice. It's never too late for amends because you will pass too. Sometimes amends are only possible after the fact.
My husband died in front of me and I had no idea what was happening. I did not think to tell him that I loved him very much and to not leave me.
@@fembot521 I am so very sorry for your loss....it is very hard😪
@@MultiHairypotterThat's a fable, the dead know nothing... Peace be unto you...
My grandfather, My friend of twenty years, my father all gone in two years. time has told me so.. the time is ticking for me too. All we have is memories in the end and their spirits flowing in the wild forest of my heart that is all that is left. If I could tell you so, good bye to you all. Goodbye father, grand father, good bye friend.
I hope you are doing ok friend
My story too😢❤
Sadly so is my story too..lost my dear father and beloved grandfather to Covid without saying goodbye or holding his loving hands that through the years build toys and items of furniture for me , then for his loving 2 grandsons too.We miss you so much RIP , see you in heaven .
@@CharliesDaughter Thank you my dear and I pray that you too will heal in time with sweet fond memories of your beloved .God bless .
sending love, my pops passed too, this poem puts my grief into words
I'm 76 years old and I can't stop blubbering .
You truly don't fully understand this poem until you have respected time and the definition of life.
Anyone else feeling a loss of something they never knew they had?
Yes
Yes. I wish I would have known.
or a loss for something you know you never had.
Celestial wisdom
Yes very much so x
I realize that all pieces of art (i.e. poems, paintings, songs/music, dance etc.) will be interpreted slightly differently from person to person, and I honestly love that aspect 🩷 so I am curious to hear how other people interpret this gorgeous poem… And I’m also quite curious if anyone else happens to interpret it the way I do; which I feel is a testament to how time is both a blessing, but can also be a curse…depending on how we choose to spend it…and perhaps about a loved one’s passing and how we all wish we had more time with whomever has died, oftentimes we hear people mention specifically wishing so badly for “just” one more moment, one more hour, one more day, and also the regret many of us are left with that we wished we had said *something* that we feel adamantly convinced was something so VERY important , or perhaps regretting not having done something notable with the person who passed. Basically about the regrets many of us have regarding how we’ve spent some or all of our time, most notably later in life, because I think the appreciation of time only grows stronger & more & more desired with time.
Any thoughts? And if you actually read my entire comment, I’d just like to say thanks in advance for reading my thoughts 😊
To me it’s about how time stands emotionless and without mercy, time can’t tell you to weep at the clowns or stumble at the beautiful music, time doesn’t care for the fortunes as whatever happens time will still pass, the leaves decay because of time, if the lions leave and the soldiers go time will know no different, I feel this supports the way you view the poem as well, we hold so much emotion and dread of time passing with loved ones but the extra time we wish for is ruthless and will pass either way
I see it as a message ! Live and love every day to the fullest and await the kingdom of heaven’ pray and worship daily to starve the devil and life will be glorious ❤️
I'm glad you asked because as soon as I finished listening to the poem a couple of times, I wanted to write the essence or my interpretation of it somewhere on a paper lurking around me. But it's midnight here and I can't seem to locate a pen and paper, so I'm happy I get to write it as a reply to your comment.
'Life is short and unpredictable' (only time knows the price you have to pay). If you make it a habit to shy away or react rigidly to the nuggets of happiness and opportunities of connection with other people and your family in life ( i.e stumble on the music and crying in front of a clown instead of giving into the moment and laugh with him) soon life will pass you by and you'll be left with nothing but regret ( time will tell you, I told you so).
In the next two stanzas I think he tries to elaborate the messages in the first stanza more clearly.
Life is so uncertain that predicting future events or its's path will be foolish. It's ever changing. But the only thing which is constant is the love we feel towards the people we care about.we may not have a clear sight of the future but we do know for sure who we love because it transcends time and is either there or not.He also personally finds it harder (as some of us do) to profess that love verbally. In the next few lines he further clears that despite life's uncertainties 'everything happens for a reason' i.e the manifestation of things as well as what's said and done has a beginning, which could arise from interaction of matter or reason and logic. Similarly, life and death are also inevitable and each one has a purpose to serve (leaves must decay).
I think he simply urges the readers to express our love for the people we love however we can before we loose them, because we eventually will and consequently be left with deep regret (a recurrent theme in the poem).
With roses and vision he may be highlighting the true zest for life and hope that most of us have but remains unsparked and unfulfilled due to mediocrity of life and sacrifices or due to disease, loneliness or depression.
Alternatively they might also signify things which are beautiful( wished for) or not (not wished for).
Some of these ambitions and wishes will remain unsaid and will perish with age and death.
Honestly I don't think I have gathered that level of emotional maturity or life experience to understand what he means by lions or soldiers.
Here, He may be questioning the possibility of total satisfaction/absence of any regret in a utopian world where all our desires were fulfilled, a world teeming with love and devoid of hate,war and all dangers (will time say, I told you so?).
Now that I have pondered over it I find it a well balanced poem. He has used a lot of antithesis in every stanza. In addition to being evocative it is quite thought provoking, relatable and yet based on the reader, deeply personal.
You have succinctly and enigmatically written your thoughts about this poem just as the original author of it would have wished for it to be interpreted praise and honour to you tonight from myself in uk
😊 Very well said could not agree more.
W.H. Auden's work is so memorable. He was a true talent.
He really was. I have this and The Unknown Citizen on replay
@@danielpierce88 I have been told that my song lyrics are more poetic than most, which is probably because I started as a poet and taught secondary English for many years, teaching the works of the great poets to about 2,000 students over time.
He is something else! Few poems with this level of beauty and nuance
“ Time will say nothing but I told you so …Time only knows the price you have to pay “ I’m speechless
This reached me deeply at this time of my life, because I’m hurting so bad. I need this written on my walls to wake up to it daily, pretty soon there will be no daily, if I could I would have told you so…..
Me too. In fact I think I will. ❤
Me too. In fact I think I will. ❤
i understand. if nobody's told you today, I love you and I care about you.
I've been going through the hardest experience of my life and this poem is keeping me going, it's so healing and beautiful. I listen to this and just cry for hours.
Most of us face these bitter trials at some time or another on our journies through life. I hope you sail into your peaceful port soon and see the past in perspective. Peace to you.
Keep going friend, you have so much more to give, not all chapters are are the same nor are the as forefilling, they are just that small chapters in our existence, keep looking forward!
I had to translate it! Beautiful poem!
Hold steady. Stay strong. In the end of all things, you will have everything. And more.
Kindest regards, M.
❤❤❤
Because I love you more than I can say...😢 so apt for my life of unrequited love.
And mine. But at least we loved. It's pain full but that's not the worst that can happen. The worst is perhaps being so full of pain that we want life to end and having no one who cares. ❤❤❤❤
How are you my friend?
Going through that too. Wish it never happened, really.
Stay strong. We have to live our lives. We will get better xx
If I could tell you I would let you know - I love you, my daughter. Such a beautiful & moving poem
❤ You'll see her again.
How many secrets
will you keep.
Knowing this secret
cuts me deep.
If you keep a secret,
another one's trust.
Do you count my
needs as merely dust?
Where does your allegiance lie,
when my need to know
makes me want to die?
Who else's need will
come first for you.
In the future after
we say "I do."
Beautiful poem. .
Auden carefully planned his words. My favourite poet . It's a true love poem. Incrediably beautiful.
No one can read poetry as beautifully as Tom O' Bedlam. Thank you. A heartbreaking and yet hopeful poem.
This was beautiful, and sadly true. As a poet myself, I hope to write something as poignant as this.
So beautifully narrated this beautiful poem..
Without going into too much details. I had a gun to my head and the words mentioned in my ear, “It’s off to the next world for you son, say your prayers” I just remembered this poem.
Glad you’re still here. 🕊
Good thinking.
I hope you are doing better, keep going, may the universe protect you and heal you 🙏🏽
Please stay 💔
Stay with us luv ❤️
Love you forever Joe P life will never be the same without you here!😢❤❤
If I heard this when I was 18,. I would have blown it off. Now, at 51,.it hits home like a slamming door when your taking a deep nap.
I was at 18 yesterday. Oh what a ride it has been.
Just wait till you are 71 like me! Things are just beginning to get real at 50.
One of my dad's favourite poets. I feel sure he appreciated this one. Missing my dad but there's still joy in the journey. God bless.
This is so beautiful and heartbreaking at the same time.😢 I love Tom O’Bedlam
I really enjoyed the poem. Thanks for the video🙂🙃
If I could tell you I would let you know… how much I love you every day.
I like this. If I could I would tell my husband I love him so much. That there is someone holding us away from each other. So many lies. I want you in my arms today. Yet you believe all the lies. Then call me delusional. Why is he like this? I married him to be with him for a life time. Why let a woman come in between us 😢
My wife of 23 years left me for a twice divorced man....she said she needed to find herself . It's been 7 months....It hurts,but will be ok. Good luck to you.
Hi, I hope this isn't too late.. read about Charlyne Steinkamp! In the end, love will always triumph!
My heart is with you… 😢
I kidded myself that I was a poet. The more I hear of Auden's work (and I haven't heard half enough), the more I grow in awe of his ability to dexterously choose the precise word to fit the emotion he conveys. I am in awe of this master craftsman. Time is an impartial referee: it's how to wrest the greatest meaning from each moment with those we love which ultimately matters and to be as kind as we can to each other.
That's so sweet John I hope who ever it was ment for sees it.
This is awsom beyond explanation. I love this poetry. I love the narorator's voice. I heard him recite Edgar Allen Poe's poem "Alone". If you've never heard it, look it up on youtube. I could watch videos and listen to this guy recite deep classic poetry for a million hours! BEAUTUFUL, POWERFUL, BEYOND WORDS!👌👍Whoever posted this, thank you, this is just, well, its just.....
I wish Leonard Cohen have had sung this
The Communards did.
Was chirpy till I watched this. Thank God for whisky.
Just the voice - solemn and grated, scrapes your skin ,mind and heart.The words die away in your trippy awakening.
This is absolutely beautiful.
This is beautiful, time only knows the price we have to pay. 🎉 time will say nothing time will say notning but I told you so...absolutely Beautiful.
Love the poem & poet. Love the music even more - Icelander Johann Johansson. This is Flight from the City, last published 2023 on Elegy for Time (Spotify). Played it for my sons memorial, It’s brought me peace since his 2020 death.
Thank you for sharing this . Wishing you good memories & a peaceful heart . 🙏
I had to read this poem in front of my class in school 53 years ago and it has stayed with me my whole life through some very trying times so sorry for your loss
I wish you could tell me so brother, I know that You, D, Chris, Mary, Jason, Jer & too many others will be waiting for me when I finally get there....
Thanks for sharing the name of the composer. This video wouldn't have been the same without it. Sorry about the loss of your beloved son ❤🙏
A haunting and beautifully crafted villanelle
Wow, that is intense and writes itself on your heart.
I lost my wife of 60 years in January.This poem makes me cry. Imiss her so.
@@davidmills9064 ❤😢
The poems are gorgeous 🎉
With time one learns not say," don't do this, because,,,,"
And then with time,one learns not to say, " i told you so,,,"
And with time, one learns to let the flowers fall.
And let time show your children,by saying nothing at all !
Love this poem, with aging, with " time".
Not only the words, but the voice …
Oooh that deep & breathless voice, a voice for all times!
Beautiful ❤
Auden was a word crafter par excellence. It's a joy to hear this . A love poem that is real.
Such a beautiful soul! ❤Titus❤
To Titus ❤
Overwhelmingly beautiful! 💞💫
i watch these videos and feel so connected to it by my depression that it makes me want to just yell at the top of my lungs outside so loud and hard that the feeling of have just goes away
Do it, but you better commit. Scream until your voice is ragged. See if you feel better , if not then perhaps screaming is a waste of time.
@@redsol3629 so i finally figurec out the source of my depression (reply if you want to know what)
@@nolanbarnes8879 Jim Carey says Depression is your body saying "Fuck you I don't want to be this character anymore" it's the gap between your current experience of life and your expectations.
@@redsol3629 so many causes for depression...not a good idea to tell someone what their experience is, just sayin'
@@PoetDoc8 So I can't quote Jim Carey now without a White Knight riding in here?
Absolutely love it
I wish I could go back in time to the first time I heard the TP theme….it still moves me like nothing else.
The leaves and petals strive. But the root is corrupt. It withers.
Lovely. Thank you for sharing.
Divine. Hit home within the deepest expance I am. Cease To Cling To Yourself ~Alan Watts~
Beautiful poem that speaks volumes. “I told you so, if could tell you I would let you know. “😢❤️
My eyes give a face to the thing my heart sickens after.
Fabulous piece of writing ✍🏻
Thankyou 🌿⚘🌿
absolute perfection
@hesam7273 .Love listening to this it's so special and just very calming. ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL.
this was great
Excellent depiction of a beautiful poem. You enhanced it and made it your own!
What a voice...
So soothing...
That was just beautiful
Bringing me to deep thought pondering this life .
Myheart 💔 time I told y so😢😢😢😢😢😢😢
Jesus christ its such good writing and images it makes you feel ok with whats happening as you head towards death but its like someome rubbing your head as you fall asleep and everything you forgot may come to you (usually bad) but its good to feel it i think, life to live i believe
This goes beyond words... right into my heart and soul.... speechless ❤
I once was a poet
and.
didnt know it .
🤗
My husband of seven years and I are falling apart, we're not the same as we used to, rather I'm not the same. I think I underestimated change but I did and I'm not happy anymore and I can't stay here anymore. I love him so much but I eat he everyone leave but I'm still in the same place.
Such a beautiful poem. This truly hits home now, because, we found out that my brother-in-law had passed away over the weekend. We live in another state, so, seeing him would have been rather difficult. The point here is that we did not say we loved him nor did we have the chance to say goodbye.
❤ Say goodbye with your heart ❤️
❤Thank you my dear friend. 🙏⚘
I miss you so much, my beautiful friend. Next month it will be a year since you left us. I still haven't processed it all. I can't deal with it. There's a hole where you should be in my heart.
Great work-the voice and soundtrack is perfect together. You captured the feeling of the poem. 🙏🏻😊
You’re hilarious. Thank you!
Simply Love
Great work-the voice and soundtrack is perfect together. You captured the feeling of the poem.
Deep, and powerful
" Dont worry. Its always darkest before the dawn. Before long, you're going to feel better, and you'll see it's always darkest before the dawn. How long before you realise that it's always darkest before the dawn. It always helps to remember that its always darkest before the dawn.
Absolutely splendid words. I wish i had met you many years ago before the years passed quickly by.
GOOD MAN
Rest in peace My Darling July 20 2002 forever in My heart ❤️
❤
What does everyone think this poem means? Such wonderful words. Is the author saying time slips by with no warning - and if he could warn his loved ones to respect the fact that time moves fast… he would?
Time is fleeting and it's a reminder of this fact. It's not a warning, more like a contemplation but this depends on who listens to it.
Live in moment
Great as always!
Beautiful words ❤
Wow, extremely wonderful!
beautiful
Well done! Enjoyed watching!
Beautiful!!!
Beautiful!👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
Peaceful, deep and truly beautiful ❤❤❤
Wow this is so beautiful ❤
Auden poems are so much about leaving
This is beautiful
Very Beautiful.
Wow!
i need this right now.
Beautiful 😢
Thank you.
❤😊that’s beautiful….Happiness
I love you, sweet Ashkii 💔
Brilliant