Time held me green and dying
Though I sang in my chains like the sea. ✪✪✪
These famous closing lines from Dylan Thomas’s (1914 – 1953) “Fern Hill” (1945) express the poet’s deep understanding of life and time. Here, the poet realizes that while time gave him youth and joy, it also slowly led him toward death and loss.
In these lines, Dylan Thomas looks back at his childhood days at Fern Hill Farm, his Aunt Annie Jones’s house in Wales. He was once young, happy, and free. He was full of life and dreams. The phrase “Time held me green” means that Time kept him young, fresh, and full of energy. “Green” stands for youth, innocence, and growth.
But at the same time, he says, “and dying.” This means that even while he was enjoying life, he was also moving closer to death.
Time, which once felt like a friend, has now become a force that binds him. It gives life but also takes it away.
The poet then says, “Though I sang in my chains like the sea.” This is a powerful image. The “chains” mean the limits of life and time. Every human being is bound by time, just as the sea is bound by its shore. Yet, even in these chains, the poet continues to sing. The “sea” represents eternal movement and the endless rhythm of life.
Through this image, Dylan Thomas shows his love for life. Though time has tied him down, he still celebrates existence. His song is his art, his memory, and his spirit that time cannot destroy.
In these lines, Time becomes both jailer and teacher. It binds the poet, yet gives him the wisdom to sing. Dylan Thomas ends the poem with beauty and strength. This shows that life’s song continues, even within the chains of time.
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