Quiet

I can feel the silences.

When she walks away and
forgets to look back
one last time – I

can feel the silence.

And, invisible, when he
flits upon a memory of my
face and leaves – I

can feel
the silence.

It’s not the weight of hurt
or the weight of alone but

the weight of quiet.
The weight of words being
invisible or never

existing.

Realization

Somewhere, down below
a snare drum is beating out
the silences–
can’t you feel it?
Boom, beat
boom, beat
in time with
the realization
dawning in your eyes–
stronger
each second, half second
quarter
boom, beat
boom, beat
echoing through the sheer
lack of sound
but there’s no pin dropping here
or eyes either, for that matter–
because you’re staring
at me
now
boom, beat
boom, beat

Boom