Friday, August 14, 2015

The Silent Guitar


In the still of night,
jumbled thoughts 
toss and turn
inside my head.
Sleep eludes me
as I lie in silence,
staring at the ceiling.

Are you awake? 
His voice comes to me
from his pillow.
He knows I am. 
Yes, I whisper.

Why? He asks.
The answer hangs 
between us in the dark.



There is an empty bed 
across the hall.
The guitar stands silent 
against the wall.




Are you homesick? He asks.
I shake my head,
afraid my voice
will betray these 
fragile feelings
so close to 
the surface of my heart.


I turn my head to the wall.
I am heartsick, I realize,
missing my son so far away.


His bed is empty 
across the hall.
His guitar stands silent 
against the wall.


Do you think he's awake? He asks.

Hot tears roll 
across my cheek,
and soak into 
my pillow.

You should call him, he says.

I don't want him 
to hear me cry, I say,
but messages travel 
through the night
to my boy so far away, 
now more man than child.

In the quiet of the night, 
my phone vibrates.
I walk down the hall and
past his room, 
where the lone guitar
stands sentinel 
by an empty bed.

I miss you, I whisper 
in the dark, 
smiling through my tears.
I can't wait to hear 
you play your guitar again.






I'll see you in just 
a couple weeks, he says.
I love you, Shrink, 
he whispers in the dark.

I love you, too.

There was a time long ago
when we two were awake 
in the middle of the night,
in a rocking chair 
by an empty crib,
as I gentled him to sleep 
with whispers of love
and gentle lullabies.
His soft breath warm 
against my neck.

Who needs soothing 
in the night now?
Who needs reassuring 
words and sweet songs?



Soon he'll gracefully strum 
the strings of his guitar,
and untangle this 
knotted ache in my heart.

Until then,
His bed is empty 
across the hall.
His guitar stands silent 
against the wall.











2 comments:

  1. Simply beautiful! There must be some song lyrics in you just waiting to be penned!
    Thank you for sharing that!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for reading, and for taking the time to leave a comment. I've never written lyrics...hmm...

      Delete

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