This quiet
embraces,
wraps me in stillness;

in our new space
I welcome silence,
long-lost friend,
and hear things
for the first time–

the metal wall clock that I purchased
a decade ago
ticks audibly–
tick, tick, tick, tick;
ten years passed
without hearing
its heartbeat–

when the cats pad across the shiny hardwood,
each step produces
a tiny, muffled thump–
tap, tap, tap, tap;
I hear them coming before I see them;
eight years passed
without hearing
their delicate approach–

what other
still, small voices
have I missed?

Text and
image © 2013 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved.