The sounds of her are distant to me now;
I barely hear the groanings that she makes.
She feels, and yet I cannot understand
How silence has replaced expressions, why
I cannot penetrate her outer shell,
Nor soften its desire to resist.

An evil has ensnared this poet's heart,
Has bound her dreaming spirit where she lay.
And as the pain of silence lingers deep
Where words to satisfy no longer reach,
This emptiness will surely lead to death
Unless this heart be stirred to sing again.


copyright (c) JMStevens, 2002