time doesn’t march, it has warp engines

They say “time flies.”
We know it does.
But how does it fly?

Does it have wings?
And if so, what kind…
bird? bug? butterfly?

Or does it flap its arms
(i.e. clock hands, time arms)
and float off that way?

Does it buy tickets online —
first class or business?
aisle seat or window?

Does it magically lift-off
like a NASA rocket,
and does it see stars?

Does it need accessories:
broom? carpet? jetpack?
dust from small fairies?

This is what I want to know.
How does time fly?
And how can I catch up?

Poem ©2016, Jen Payne, National Poetry Month, 11. Image courtesy of the National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution. Note: I remember seeing this fantastical work of art at the Museum on a school trip in the late 80s. The Museum’s website says, the “S.S. Pussiewillow II by Rowland Emett as it appeared on display circa 1980 in the Flight in the Arts gallery….This indescribable kinetic work became a favorite of adults and children alike. The object was taken off display in 1990, but visitors with long memories still ask about it.” That’s me. Old with a long memory.