Home » Poems » Alison A Smith » Illusion of Solidity

Poet Free verse

Notes About The Poem

Written 10th August, 2026 for Illusion of solidity Poetry Contest sponsored by Unseeking Seeker.

Line of inquiry:

The dream seems real since we don a form,

borrowed from elements of that domain,

but if we simply chose not to conform,

we wake up when desires to rest are lain.

Illusion of Solidity

It began as tone—
no origin, 
no end—  
                                                a chord mistaken for a world made whole.  

A held vibration gathered into shape;  
       harmonics thickened into edges felt,  
            and silence filled with structures made of sound.  

A pattern looping through a field of noise,  
hoping repetition made it true.  

Desire tuned the body into pitch,  
       insisted on a key, a fixed resolve,  
             refusing dissonance its right to pass.  

But slowly,         the will releases intervals;  
resolutions drift without a home,       and rhythm slips its measure into air.  

Overtones collapse to quieter threads;  
      no struck glass shivering into light,  
            no instrument remains to house the sound.  

No echo left to gather into form

only the unheard,  
unstruck,  
unheld

a silence  

prior to all music,  
          where nothing ever  
                       needed  
                                  to be shaped.

musicsymbolismfree verse

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Christopher Haywood

August 22, 2026 at 6:41 PM

I really like this poem. As vibrations collapse and instruments vanish, reality returns to a silence that existed before. We all need to let go of our need to control and shape reality. Congratulations. Nicely completed. - Chris

Alison A Smith

August 22, 2026 at 8:47 PM

Thank you for your kind words Christopher.

Sam Kauffman

August 21, 2026 at 11:18 AM

Alison, what a beautiful poetic song. While we can't hold onto a musical note, it isn't an illusion. Music is no dream and reaches into those spaces within us to create understanding and harmony both in our interior world and with the world of solid objects and people. How beautifully you have sung this theme. Are you a musician? Congratulations on your win! Blessings of joy to you.

Alison A Smith

August 21, 2026 at 3:00 PM

I am no musician but find music flows through many of my poems.

Krishnanand Guptar

August 21, 2026 at 8:33 AM

Congratulations on your win in this contest with a lovely poem glowing with imagery on the illusion of a sound. A cute take on the prompt and the way you dfesigned the verses. Particularly love the line: "silence filled with structures made of sound."

Alison A Smith

August 21, 2026 at 2:59 PM

Thank❤️ you for your comment.

Sotto Poet

August 21, 2026 at 5:00 AM

Dear Alison, my hearty congratulations on your win in the contest with this poem, which beautifully explores the concepts of impermanence and identity.

Alison A Smith

August 21, 2026 at 5:03 AM

Thank you Sotto for your visit and kind words.