"Bells of Iridescent Scales" by Jane Lierly

Silence.

Oppressive. Stifling. Empty.

Only because I am warmth

of searing pain, cold

branding iron on soul. Body

constricts, vacuum sealed

No room for me.

Sounds

a soothing balm

  vibrating through space,

   dyeing the water of my soul

  colors of pondering ripples 

 eradicating silence.

Sound waves

 bring the first fish

  swimming in and around

   my soul humming

  Hymns resonating

 with the first note.

Vibrations

 paint the colors of the soul

  bouncing jellyfish in the sea

   I hold it, my hands dyed colors

  it leaves me and swirls away,

 carried by currents of sound

joining the vibrant river of scales.

 Imitation

  is the survival of fish

    feeling for resonations

  of people so far away

right next to me

  let their frequencies splash

    through my body, my soul

  I hold them inside

I make them my own.

Creation

 of self isn’t a process

  done alone, in silence

   I must listen to others

  see their colors

 mix them into me

shape myself anew.

Realization

isn’t much like a crashing wave

  It’s easy, slow arrival with time

    spent thinking, listening to others

      until the water rises enough

        swirling with colors and fish

      radiant ripples in their wake

    frequencies bounce around

  and I can finally hear myself.

Resonation

 My sound among others.

  It fills me so clearly, an iridescent

   church bell of vibrant scales

    piercing through the walls

   of my limitations,

  my body and my soul

 warm with my rippling waves

unsilenced and free.