SILENCE

by Marguerite Guzmán Bouvard

brings us the radiance of that vast

invisible world that is pulsating

within us and around us, the fire

of becoming, the many dimensions

of being, the understanding

that the true and boundless power

is love. We need silence and solitude

for our souls to flourish, to move past

the noise, the chatter, the desire

to be more important than another

person. As we walk through

life’s journey, humility opens the doors

that separate us from the marginalized,

and the misunderstood, helping us to see

the beauty within them, to know

that we are all connected to every living being;

flowers, bees, a bird’s wing,

to know that we are in the hospital

with a child who has been wounded

in a war, that we are made of light,

not only of flesh and bone.

* * * * *

"Silence" is part of Marguerite Guzmán Bouvard 's forthcoming poetry chapbook Shades of Meaning.

Marguerite Guzmán Bouvard (www.MargueriteGBouvard.com) is the author of ten poetry books, two of which have won awards, including the MassBook Award for Poetry. She has also written many non-fiction books on women's rights, social justice, grief, illness, and "The Invisible Wounds of War: Coming Home from Iraq and Afghanistan". She is a former professor of Political Science and Poetry, a former Resident scholar at Women's Studies Research Center and Environmental Studies at Brandeis University.