Illustration by Austin Wang
Silence.
A term of complete absence
An all encompassing void
Silence
A form of resentment
Internalized in fear
Silence
A state of disapproval
Met with deaf ears
Silence
A form of oppression
Born from outside and within
Silence
A condition in which
No voice can be heard
An emptiness so suffocating
A stillness so deafening
A state in which your inner voice,
Unique, precious, hopeful,
Is but a distant echo
Within the maze of your minds
A mind of confusion, of loathing
A mind of guidance,
Stifling in its control
A myriad of voices
Calling, beckoning, yearning
To be fulfilled
A silencing dissonance
Stretching upon decades
Wearing away at the edges of sanity
A journey of torment
Leading to the crossroads
Of change or of stagnance
Of truth or of lies
To break the silence
Or be broken by it
I am not silence
Nor is it me
I am a voice
Yet learning to be free
One, whose story is reflected
On a myriad of voices
Within an endless sea
Reflecting inhibition, freedom
Of vastly varying degrees
Alas, I am but one voice
Among a sea of thousands,
but should it be heard
And prevent yet another
From departing this mortal sea,
Then the past silence,
This resentment, fear, disapproval
Ingrained within scars
In the annals of my mind
Will have carried their worth