UNSILENT NIGHT

UNSILENT NIGHT

Noises in the night

doubled in the dark

when we close our eyes:

The yelp of wild dogs

in the distance.

The squeal of sirens

demanding right of way

in empty streets.

The sound of the surf

beating time to

the thalassic rhythms

within us.

The tick if not the tock

of the grandfather clock

in the high-ceilinged hall.

The plop of the ice-maker

laying its frozen eggs.

The murmer of machines

that keep us comfortable

in this incubator,

that keep us balanced

in the bassinette

of Coriolus spin we’re in.

With these noises,

singly or in concert,

silent nights are no more.

  February 5, 2008