What Silence Heard

By: Karen Hecht Springer

March 16, 2016

She gets out the griddle

They used to joke it’ll be a family heirloom

As old as you are

Put that away, he says –

Let’s have waffles instead

She looks up

The steam dissipates and

The face is gone

Meet me at 8, he says –

Can you be there?

Yes, she replies, and she gets up and showers

No makeup, hair a mess

Throws on clothes

The sign says homemade hash

Hustle-bustle of the morning

Cheery waitress with a smile

The table is missing one

Standing in line at the deli

The familiar dialogue 

Dave’s Market is delicious, he says  –

The roast beef’s so good

I’ll have a half pound sliced thin

She smiles, it's always the same order

Hearing the rustle of the plastic

Half expecting to see him making a sandwich

The plate is empty

She touches the ground

There’s a fresh stone in the row

A red rose like he always loved

Swaying in the breeze

Dad, this one’s for you, she says  – 

The silence can hear it all