Silence

I will tell you 

what I know 

of the way 

silence 

grows roots, 

buries itself deep, 

until all that is left 

is a brutal vacancy 

where a voice 

used to be;

how words unspoken 

break down, 

flotsam 

where once there were 

proud ships, 

ash 

left from a fire 

that warmed only 

itself. 

Seeds of self doubt 

grow unchecked, 

and slowly, 

excruciatingly, 

I am alienated from

myself. 

I die between 

one breath 

and the next: 

curl up and 

leave so quietly 

so completely 

that even my 

shadow 

does not yet know

I am

gone.