The spoken word is a stray bullet,

Nobody knows where it goes,

The only security is in a private thought,

Unspoken, so nobody knows,

When spoken the bullet like phrases,

Can travel an unimaginable range,

Unintentionally destroying a lifestyle,

And causing unbearable pain,

Often there’s no malice intended,

It’s just a thought that was in some-one’s head,

But a secret is only a secret until,

It is hinted at, written or said,

When a thought or a feeling is spoken,

It then becomes public domain,

Changing each time of retelling,

Until little of the original remains,

And no-one can be blamed for repeating,

A thing once known only to you,

For the stray bullet would not have been fired,

If you had not wanted it to,

So the best way of concealing a secret,

Is as a thought that will never be said,

Forever secure in your own mind,

And that’s as safe as a secret can get,

For a thought is unseen and un-noticed,

Weather of love, hate or secret desire,

No-one can see your innermost thoughts,

So the stray bullet can never be fired,

By S.E.Ralph

18-7-2006