Melissa Silva

This Word

Yes, even this word,
this one word,
this very word,
this,
this word on the page,
this page,
this page that you touch,
this word that you see,
this word that you hear,
and all it invokes,
good, bad, indifferent,
vivid or not so vivid,
a memory, a feeling,
an experience, a sentiment,
a sight, a sound,
this word that is a word
of many words and sounds that you
think, say, hear, and sing
every moment of every day,
the sound even of your own breath,
your own breath, now
as you hear this,
as you read this,
this word, and you,
in this very moment,
this you,
this person reading,
this person listening to
this word,
this sound,
and everyone, everything,
surrounding you,
alive, and not alive,
animate and inanimate,
other people,
a chair, a table,
a room, a home,
a window,
and outside that window,
the paths,
the sidewalks,
the buildings,
the trees,
the animals,
the insects,
the air,
the sky,
which all feels so definite and
defined,
so permanent,
so real,
so touchable,
so ineffable,
will not last,
will fade,
will wear down,
will wither,
will decay,
will pass away,
will end,
and cease to be.

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Melissa Silva is a Poet and Buddhist living in Arlington, MA., who loves words and the sound of one hand clapping.

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