He Gobbled Up the Minutes

by Bill Bowler

He gobbled up the minutes of his life
like dumplings swallowed whole
while all around him, one by one, they dropped like flies
and hit the ground stone cold.
And all he wished was one more gulp
one last glance around before
his atoms scattered to the poles
a startled flock of birds,
little kids dismissed from school,
something missed, an unheard word,
one last sip then disappear,
a fleeting afterthought of someone near...