Alarm clock Quote by Denis Johnson
““AFTER MAYAKOVKSY by Denis Johnson It's after one. You're probably alone. All night the moon rings like a telephone in an empty booth above our separateness. Now is the hour one answers. I am home. Hello, my heart, my God, my President, my darling: I'm alarmed by the alarm clock's iridescent face, hung like a charm from darkness's fat ear. This accident that was my life will have its witnesses: now, while the world lies wholly motionless and sorry in a crapulence of stars, now is the hour one rises to address the ages and history and the universe: I swear you'll never see my face again.””
About This Quote
Source Poem: AFTER MAYAKOVKSY (published 1997) by Denis Johnson
A contemplative meditation on isolation, mortality, and the fleeting nature of existence, urging one to seize the present and speak truth to the cosmos.
In simple terms: Reflect on being alone and the urgency of now.
Key Takeaway
Embrace the moment and speak your truth.
Themes
is
mortality
existence
urgency
Mood
melancholic
reflective
Type
poetic
philosophical
When to use this quote
- Late night solitude
- creative writing
- personal crisis
- spiritual awakening
Key Concepts
Existentialism
poetic introspection
cosmic perspective
Questions to Reflect On
- What does “the hour one rises” mean to you?
- How can you honor the present in daily life?
A Different Perspective
The abstract imagery may be too vague for concrete action.
![“O, may you look, full moon that shines, On my pain for this last time: So many midnights from my desk, I have seen you, keeping watch: When over my books and paper, [390] Saddest friend, you appear! Ah! If on the mountain height I might stand in your sweet light, Float with spirits in mountain…” quote by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/5b6/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe-36_books_o-may-you-look-full-moon-that-shines-on_969392.jpg)
