To walk away
to slam the lid of silence
or yet again
to take up the effor anew

to free the throat from the stranglehold
to fight to breathe
to pronounce a word
to utter a whole sentence
to speak up
in haste
before they once again apply the gag

I know you’re waiting
you
who listen intently
who put your ear
to a deaf wall

Wrote Stone
The Selected Poetry of Ryszard Kapuscinski