.

And by a prudent flight and cunning save A life which valour could not, from the grave. A better buckler I can soon regain, But who can get another life again? Archilochus

Tuesday, July 11, 2017

The Fear of SIlence

I have not heard silence
more than in music

the hollow of a bell
the harmony of a singer
the puncturing of a drum

excavates a sanctuary
inside my skull, there I capture
strains of music that belong
to a realm without sound
desert where silence performs for silence

when I no longer have thirst
I will be able to stay there
a symphony of deafness will congregate
I will hear nothing
but the absence of myself
- Author Unknown

10 comments:

FreeThinke said...

They’ll find me soon
I know they will
I need to be alone.

Their nattering demands are shrill,
They chill me to the bone.
The thumping, bawling whining drone ––

Persistent raucous blast ––
Seeks each secret hiding place ––
Shatters every caste.

They’ll find me soon,
I know they will,
But till they do I’ll fight ––

Eccentric –– lost ––
But steeled against ––
The Realm of Endless Night.


~ FreeThinke (1982)

FreeThinke said...

______________ The Boombox _____________

Nestled in a quiet glade so still
One could hear a fluttering sparrow’s wing,
Immersed in prayerful thought, I’d like to kill that
Squawking, howling, growling, thumping thing

Engrossing –– eating up –– my sacred space,
Projecting Social Cancer at my head.
Overtaking prayer it chokes like mace.
Like mace it stings then stuns. My mind, well-fed,

Leaps to battle the Invading Force,
Usurping all my rights to meditate.
The minions of the militantly coarse
Idolize the fiends who violate

Our right to think and feel from deep within
Negating all that’s good with fearful din.

FreeThinke said...

_________ Deafening Decay _________

Delight to some, to others desecration
Eradicating every single chance
At peaceful, soul-enriching contemplation
Fostering the hope for sweet romance.
Ears and mind, instead, sit stunned –– assaulted.
Noxious noise befouls the atmosphere
In throbbing pseudo-ecstasy exalted
Neutralizing all that’s clean and clear.
Ground out tones smacking of self-pity
Degrade the mise en scene where they appear,
Erasing what’s not grubby, gross or gritty
Catering, instead, to our worst fears.
Aggravation never ceasing breeds
Yammering lemmings aping Satan’s leads.


~ FreeThinke

FreeThinke said...

__________ Musical Toilets
 __________

Mistaken notions in the world abound ––
Unheard of at the time when I was born.
Surrounded –– soaked –– in crass, unwanted sound
I’m buried –– suffocated –– and forlorn.
Consciousness invaded by loud static ––
Ambushed –– conquered –– isolated –– snuffed ––
Languishes while Coarseness brays ecstatic.
The mind can’t thrive when with distractions stuffed ––
Over-filled –– with poisonous temptations
Instigating sullenness engaged
In assertive, mulish non-participation
Erupting just when pointlessly enraged.
The times have changed; they have become deranged.
Silence, from our world’s become estranged.


~ FreeThinke

FreeThinke said...

____________ Stillness ____________

No sound beyond the dropping of the leaves
Or shushing in the treetops of the stirring
In the air and periodic whirring
Soft of wings and bundling of sheaves ––

Every now and then a bird may call
Looking for or longing for his mate;
Escaping still the hunter’s dinner plate.
Scythes swish steadily as grain grown tall

Submits to delicate compelling force.
Workers silently bent to their task
Over whom hot sunshine spills its rays

Reap swiftly knowing pain could come, of course.
Later, in the afterglow they’ll bask
Dreaming foolishly of better days.


~ FreeThinke

Thersites said...

*silence*

FreeThinke said...

__________ Summer Soliloquy __________

Alone I walk down shady woodland paths.

Bright sunshine filtered through the trees

Dapples the ground beneath my questing feet.



Here at last I am alone with God.



Farther on a little pool catches 

And reflects the filtered light which beckons

Kindly like a White Witch of the Wood.



I feel a thrill without a trace of fear.



I cannot stop myself from moving closer

Toward the Edge to see the Tadpoles swimming

In myriad stages of development.



I feel a wish to be part of their world.



The pool is a Mirror enabling me to see

Myself more clearly in a tranquil light;


Also an Eye that opens the mysteries of 


The Universe to peace-filled understanding.



~ FreeThinke (1956)

FreeThinke said...

___ SNOW HAIKU ___

Fresh snow at sunset
Trees glistening quietly
In pink and copper tones.

Snow covered branches
Thaw, then turn to crystal lace
Gleaming in sun light.

Melting on the ground
As snow deserts the branches
Black twigs claw the sky.


~ FreeThinke

FreeThinke said...

The secret to combatting ADD

Lies in taking one thing you think great

Into splendid isolation where no sounds

Or sights assault the senses with distractions

Concentrate on learning to ignore

Stray thoughts and wayward influences crude

Self-discipline becomes its own reward

Examine only one thing at a time


Pop Culture we must come to recognize

As the enemy of Reason and good work.

Learn to cherish silence so you can

Listen to your heart and see within.


Monasticism may seem too austere,

But retreating from the world pays dividends

It deepens your perceptions as it hones
Improvement in your character and views,


And aids in helping you learn to eschew
The tawdriness that saps your strength, and then

Impoverishes every part of you.


~ FreeThinke


~ RBT - 8/26/15

FreeThinke said...


___ TO PROMOTE INNER PEACE ___

Divorce yourself from everything that's "pop"
Visualize a cabin in the pines
Close by a silver lake or sparkling stream
Detached from every aspect of the grid.
Chop wood, fetch water so you may survive
Eating fresh caught fish or game you kill
Along with berries, nuts, and tasty leaves.
Carry with you a supply of books
Writing paper and a clutch of pens
Allow yourself an oil lamp for the night
Embrace austerity, and get to know
Yourself, and only what may be essential
To survival in the coming winter months.
Emulating Thoreau may provide
The antidote to hellish modern life.


~ FreeThinke