Towards Silence

"Somewhere in the
onrush of everydayness

I lost track of myself.

Now I lie beside this chaste sea

watching a skyful of sun, clouds,

and birds sailing towards silence.

Music enters the afternoon,

weaves the air then gently falls

on me with the uncertainty of rain.

Suddenly all things beneath the sand

are moving with the restless wind.

Preoccupied with the perishable day,

I am deaf to yesterday's churning

with its graveclothes and honors.

All I want to hear, or feel, is music,

So, I will remain by this partisan sea,

running without moving,

shedding the thick skin of doubt,

listening to the sky sing, watching--

still waiting to bring myself

to this place where I should arrive."

- Gordon Parks (1912 - 2006)

Glimpses Toward Infinity