I stepped outside before the dawn
And in the darkness I stood there;
Looking about my grassy lawn
And through the trees from winter bare.

I stopped because the silence played
Through the trees and upon the lawn;
In that quiet moment I stayed 
In the darkness before the dawn.

I listened for a car to roar,
Yet only heard one on the street.
I longed for silence - there before 
Our world was filled with this concrete. 

I mourn for all the stillness lost, 
I mourn for all our poor eardrums,
That ring and click from what it's cost
To build all these cement kingdoms. 

But whisp'ring through that mournful thought...
The sole car fades into silence...
I reflect on this peace I've sought...
Birds restrain their songs in shyness...
 
And as I look about my lawn
I release a breath I had drawn
In the darkness before the dawn.
In the darkness before the dawn.