My Great Tragedy

Imagine if I was the daughter
Of a Roman Emperor
Or an Egyptian pharaoh
Or a Phoenician trader
I would tour the ancient world
See things long-hidden by time
I could find my way anywhere
If someone asked where a road led
I'd know
And imagine the adventures I'd have

Imagine if I lived in England
In 1066
Or 1566
Or 1866
Or lived in France during the Revolution

If all that was possible
I could be a bootlegger
Or a pirate
And if I fancied being a duchess
I could be one as easily as I could be a serf

But until all the physicists smarten up
And build me a time machine
This is the great tragedy of my life
That I cannot change where, when, what I am at will
But this great tragedy is also why I have an imagination
(Coincidently, it's also why I want to be a physicist)