All night while the rain fell
you turned the words over in silence

The wet grass did not know
your brother was asleep across the room

You smelled the mowed lawn,
listened to your brother’s breathing

You wanted to memorise the words
scorched into wood

love… perennial as grass

but all you could think of was losing
faith, a breath at a time

*

On a plaque over the chimney breast,
Ehrmann’s words failed you then

as they do now
…no less than trees or stars

No shame, or bitter recollection,
only your brother’s unforgettable reserve

While the rain falls
like an audience applauding silence