I’ve Always Valued Peace and Quiet

But not when forced into a corner by it

Image by Duc Tinh Ngo from Pixabay

Was it only ten months ago
Silence attacked me in
The darkest corner of my heart;
A violent assault on all I held dear
Which had disappeared into the past?

This assassin of my soul
Teased and mocked,
Daring me to step into
The void that lay before me.

I contemplated empty days
Devoid of conversation,
Silent nights
Where only my breath
Told me I was alive,
Yet reminded me he wasn’t.

I craved a snore, a sneeze
Or farts that
Used to make us laugh.
Any noise from
The other side of the bed
Would offer welcome comfort,
Fill the emptiness.

I imagined familiar sounds of
Decades inside my head,
And when I couldn’t conjure them
I’d switch on my phone and
Listen to his voice from the past,
Recordings I’d made
Knowing I would outlast him.