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The Strength of Silence
Text version:
The Strength of Silence
Her driving left a lot to be desired,
But as a passenger, she was much worse.
He let her drive and said nary a word
As he’d pretend to sleep in silent prayer
For he who can be silent sets the norm.
There were strange things that she would do, myst’ries
To men or canines or decent logic.
But, he dare not ask. She might misconstrue,
As he had learned it many times before,
That the question was a criticism.
He wanted nothing but a chance to work,
But she thought now the time for her to speak
And so he listened and he smiled, nodding,
remarking as he should, conversation,
Aware she had only one time, her own.
His patience grew with words he did not form.
His tongue, if bitten in youth, was no more
Now battered by words that wanted to swarm
And sweep misunderstandings to the fore.
He had chosen to see love fully grown.
This is an entry in our Group Writing Series under March’s theme of Feats of Strength. We still have openings on March’s schedule and sign-up sheet, including for today and next Tuesday, and I warn you now, if nobody signs up to take them, more poetry (or whatever that was above) will be coming to fill the empty slots. This was filling the empty slot from March 9th. Go sign up now.
I muttered something sotto voce about women drivers that was overheard by my wife. I heard about it in a church council meeting…
Let your silence be silent indeed.
Lovely, @arahant. Generosity, patience, time, familiarity. And strength. Thank you.
The strength of patience with one another. I love it.
He wanted to say some/ many things to her but bit his tongue instead?
Words are like grenades, Simon. If you’re going to toss them around, make sure the pins don’t come out.
I wasn’t thinking so much of the military metaphor (understand why you went there in this particular instance). I was thinking more anaphylactic shock from a mouthful of words represented as a hive of angry bees. Not so much battered as paralyzed.
The last line is the key, though. To speak, or not to speak. To allow love to grow or not. It’s a choice.
but whose tongue? the dudes? color me – confused.
Yes, I think so. Think it is about a man’s patience with the object of his affections. And about how words that we throw around in our youth (because we can, and because we’re invulnerable, and because we’re going to live forever), we eventually learn to manage and control in the interests of longer-term objectives and interests, in this case, love. As @susanquinn says above, “Generosity, patience, time, familiarity. And strength. “
Of course, it’s actually a two way street. But this poem is from the “dude’s” perspective.
Yes, the dude’s.
Think it’s a demonstration of the utility of that old adage, “Don’t just do something. Stand there.”
Haven’t heard that one for a while. Funny.
Sounds like something that could be shared for next month’s group writing.
yep
Well played. Just signed up for the 16th.
This sound a little Autobiographic, eh Arahant?
No comment.
Mr. C and I are both engineers by training (he still practices). We started collecting data after we were married whenever we’d see a driver do something stupid. Man or woman?
Ladies, I have to say, we’re winning!
Er… somethin’. ;-)
Teenage boys are so aggressively stupid, they give us a run for our money, though.
Don’t get cocky, dudes.
“For he who can be silent controls the norm.” Nicely done, writing group.
Well played, Arahant. Interesting form. Five line stanzas and ten syllable lines (but only occasionally iambic). Internal rhyme pop up occasionally. One end rhyme.
How did you chose such a form?
Kent
It’s a variant of the Mad Calf.
Perhaps I should point out that the “group” part is a group of separate people writing on a theme for a month. The poem is wholly mine, with no others to blame.
A comedian once told this story (one that could never be told today) on TV:
I was walking down the street minding my own business when a lady driver ran me over. I was layin’ there bleedin’ when she stuck her head out the window and yelled, “Look out!”
I said, “Look out? You ain’t gonna back up, are you?”
So much good humor is verboten today ;>)