The phone wails at 4 a.m. and the wave hits,
with the force of a violent tempest
I take the blow...to stomach, to chest, to heart
Silently screaming loudly to drown the words

Outside, alone, I ask for signs of life in a murky sea
A lyrical, tinny sound surprises me
The song of the music boxes you gave
or only wind chimes on a windless night?

Led to the front of the church, eyes upon us
we sit on red velvet and listen to a life reduced to words
the ocean inside me that has raged for days
is miraculously still as if a godly hand has raised to calm it

At home, the coolness of the hard wood on my forehead
as I fold upon the floor
does nothing to relieve the crashing, the breaking
as the waves rush in and out...

pulling broken bits of me into the deep.