Nothingness haunts being.

         Life begins on the other side of despair.

                                     -Jean-Paul Sartre

There is not a sound, not a peep or a chirp,

and the woods are right there.

There is no movement,

daylight but no sun,

the stillness wants the darkness

but only makes it to grey.

Even the flimsy moss hanging from the trees

doesn’t move in the breeze,

there is no breeze.

This is perceived as a sign, 

an ominous moment,

that predicts something is coming, 

going to happen, break the silence, the stillness.

A large deer will rush by, there will be 

a siren in the distance,

Low storm clouds will rush into vacant sky,

there will be warnings of wind and flood watch,

Martians will land.

Be content with any of the above

but until ‘it’ gets here, 

relish the tranquility, 

the God-like nothing, 

the awe-inspiring calm of nothingness. 

Stand perfectly still in the moment,

realize the next step, any movement, 

the next word you hear,

is required for any life, all being to proceed.

---

Craig Kirchner is retired and living in Jacksonville. Fl., because that’s where his grandchildren are. He loves the aesthetics of writing, has a book of poetry, Roomful of Navels and has been nominated three times for Pushcart. He was recently published in Decadent Review, Chiron Review, Queen’s Review, The Main Street Rag, Hamilton Stone Review and about eight dozen others.He houses 500 books in his office and about 400 poems on a laptop. These words help keep him straight.