Silence

Autumn leaves
fall slow
a child's questions 
left hanging
in digital silence.

My fingers trace
letters that will not
hold still

b becomes d
was becomes saw
help becomes
nothing.

The maple outside
my bedroom window
drops one red leaf,
then another,
marking time
the old way.

Mom's phone buzzes:
Car arriving in 3 minutes
Pizza en route
Package delivered.

But no alert sounds
for the moment
understanding
slips away
from me.

No GPS tracks
the distance
between
what I know
and what
I need to know
to keep up
with Sarah, Asha
and Ahmed
and everyone else
who makes reading
look easy.

The tree empties
itself
of summer.

My note
book
empties
itself
of answers
I cannot find.

Both of us wait
for spring,
for someone
to notice
the silence
growing
inside me
in all this
bright, connected
noise.
Copyright © | Year Posted 2025

Poem

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