Poem
In the Stillness
by Patty Christiena Willis
They say you speak in the stillness,
I have known that.
There are days when
all I hear is my heartbeat
and the rush of body fluids
the sound through stethoscopes like
the sound of the sea
in my ears
waves washing to shore
above me.
My feet in the fine sand
toes watching out for
pieces of glass
thrown by revelers
years ago or last night.
Public beaches in darkness
can hold anything
enough anger or carelessness
to break bottles
and chase friends
becoming enemies
across sand
missing driftwood barely
startling lovers in hollows
under trees.
Even the sea bottom
holds evidence of
life on earth
beyond your stillness.
Or, is your stillness
waiting?
They stop running
and look up
stars falling.
The empty six-pack,
the cheap wings,
Communion.
The Sea,
Your presence.
The Lovers,
evidence of life.