time clock

when you slid
the card into the time
clock and heard
the thump of the date
and hour being
imprinted onto
the lined weekly
sheet, you had a way
of counting days,
seeing years
unfold.
the hours marked
on your meager
paycheck. it was all
there, where you were,
where you had
to be. it's  been nice
without the clock
all these decades.