and if you wonder, friend, why I begin <br />a poem thus – you are to understand <br />that it’s as if <br />we have been close friends all our life, <br />friends, as Kabir defined a friend <br />as if no-one ever tried to speak of friend before – <br />friends, who share the silences between their words <br />as much as sharing their most inward thoughts; <br /> <br />so, our conversation’s just as much <br />a continuation of our friendship, <br />wasting no time in speaking passing things, <br />sharing some new thought in turn <br />and asking more for listening <br />than easy agreement for politeness’ sake; <br /> <br />for, we’re listening to the allness of the all - <br />all that has been said and <br />all that cannot yet be said <br />but thought in silences, in pauses between speech, <br />all that we might say <br />when we find words in which to say it, <br /> <br />and because <br />there’s not much time, to say what we would say <br />and so, we speak of that which time <br />can never steal; so there is always time <br />to speak, and hear the silence <br />out of which speech comes; <br />listening for the unspoken <br />bringing miracles<br /><br />Michael Shepherd<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/0013-and-friend/
