Step
How much can we give without giving it up?
How little without giving nothing?
How long can we stand in this sweet twilight
between knowing and unknowing?
On the border of yes and no,
between silence and declaration,
all is possible, all. Nothing certain.
Can the verities locked in my bones receive
manumission and be remade?
Can the truth cupped in my tongue
be released to your ear?
And when the silence that binds
me gives way to words,
what, when you hear them,
will you return?
[January 1999]
I really like this! It’s full of pretty hesitation and sounds like a held breath. The whole is awesome. In particular, I absolutely love the way you phrase the last four lines.