over our heads the seagulls flew

squawking to each other in a language

all their own.

 

i am not sure what exactly they said

but quite likely it had to do with hungry bellies,

for this is what a creature who must forage

often searches for.

 

and i wondered then why my very own heart,

a heart that has a banquet right within its reach,

has spent so much time foraging aimless for bread.

 

why sometimes it seems easier to stay in that space

of hunger called ‘distracted’ than to take even a moment

to calm, to listen to the silence.

 

do not be afraid of silence, for it is not fiercesome

and dark, no, it is a pathway to ease and light.

 

a space to rest from the cacophony of the world

around, to learn from the wisdom that whispers

between the sounds, the beating of hearts, the breath,

the calming of the storm into peace and rest,

to listen.

 

a place to feast from banquets vast

rather than senselessly, mindlessly

living on scraps. 

 

Heather Pound 2024

Photo shared by Peter Rix via ‘New Zealand is Awesome’ Facebook page.