S i l e n c e

I

In the early, heady days
When love was the only song
To be sung
We silently prayed
At the altar of Kama.

Now issues lie dormant
Like the smooth,
untouched sheets.
We dare not speak
Lest the violence of words
Stain our selves forever.

II

The words do not come easy
They never did.
First I listened to others
Did as I was told.
Then I listened to you
Did as I was told.
Now I can speak
But the words do not come.
I swallow hard and let things be
As they always have.

III

The silence knaws
A hole in the space between us
You do not extend your hand
Your fingers for me to clasp
The distance grows
And silence knows
Just how it will be.

[First published in “Kritya”, 2005]