Bound By Silence

"Bound By Silence"


Cartoon bubbles swell with thoughts
stick to the back of my throat, stymied and stunted.
My mouth gapes open, embarrassingly;
no words escape.
A valid voice in my heart clang and clamber
against its trembling walls begging for release, gasping for air,
claiming rights to speak and be heard.

The colliding utterances morph to withered whispers within.
Sounds try to manifest some semblance of inner self-conversations,
a contemplation to be expressed when next we meet. Will we meet?
Not even a rehearsal managed to reach center stage
before you as an audience of one.
Fear of your response, or lack of.
Fear of your reaction, should it be reprisal or refusal,
cause thoughts to retreat and mouth to shut.
Lips bruise in the closing.

A friendship born in sync; youth found harmony,
dedicated to long lasting love and respect,
tripped and stumbled over our silent sentences.
A relationship teeters on the rim of an abyss of misunderstanding,
seemingly a mystery, yet unsaid to be determined.
I'm left wondering if we embark upon a path leading to an impasse.

With an increasing impulse to implode,
a slow to steady drumming begins vibrating against my chest,
as if a frightened buffalo herd races toward the edge of a cliff
doomed to plummet and drown in a lake of tears.

Bound by the silence, mine and yours,
no breath is left to give wind for words,
no words soar to your heart's ears.




line count 29