an audible silence

I witnessed silence, louder than thunder
Reign over a city and nation and people
Where resonance echoed a pin’s drop
And breaths paused, fearful of being heard

A dawn charred with chary and wary
Whispering murmurs of dissatisfaction
The hearts hardened with appreciation
Rumbling a silence louder than thunder

In a past, they opted for soundlessness
O’er taunts and tattles and hearsays
They’d walk beyond in search of solace
Yeasted by hurts and provoked slurs

A string of disillusions has been broken
Echoing from moments and times past
Broken promises and disappointments
With vested authority and with society

Within the family and amongst friends
Perceptions and assumptions solidified
Inciting malice and derogatory thoughts
A verdict inspired by repulsive rumours

The trees quieten as edginess uncloaked
The silence ricocheting from the valleys
Has ascended clouds, summoning panic
And a tombstone, it erected for apathy

Full to the brim, silence has turned rebel
With an attitude and an act of anxiety
Itself ready for conflict and commotion
None is as frightful as an audible silence