And you asked me, What time is there?

By Jan Philippe V. Carpio

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And you asked me,



What time is there?

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And I could have

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given you

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the answer, right away

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if I had paid more

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attention in class

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instead

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of counting the hours on

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my fingers, skipping the middle finger

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that was burnt when the water pot

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overflowed on the stove,

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and ending the count on the thumb

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of the same hand

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instead of the index finger

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where twelve or thirteen fell.