Silences

i too love silence
the silence that lies
behind the shouts of joy
of children playing
a rowdy game
the silence behind
the cacophony of birdsounds
greeting a new dawn
the silence behind the sighs
of the wind on a field of corn
the silence that lies between
a lover’s words
the silence that lies
in the warm embrace
of my sleeping child
the silence that lies
in every moment passing
waiting for the return
of someone gone
the silence in the lines
of patient age
the hum of silence
in wisdom gained.
then there is the silence
of a war torn lane
the silence of the graveyard
stripped of life
the silence lying cold
behind love withheld
the silence between
the sobs of a beaten child
the silence in the eyes
of an uncompromising order
the silence in the protest
of abject obedience
the silence that lies on the land
under the shadow of no hope.
i like then the scream of rage
the sound of stone shattering
a windowpane
the cry of caution
“don’t pass this way!”
i like the wail of sisters
holding each another
to share their pain
i like the chanting
of the protests on the street
to bring down the miasma
of a terrorizing reign
i like the shout
of the hand that lifts
to strike away a striking hand.
then there is the silence
behind all the silences.
i too love silences
but then there are
silences and silences.

Radha Kunke