I talk in a whisper
you speak in a shout
the voice rumbles in the back of your throat
and spills out of your mouth
I talk so quiet that it is barely a breath
sometimes even I forget that I used to speak loud
my throat a roaring furnace spitting out warmth
but the sound didn’t just burn out
It was smothered to embers
voice snatched from its pit
denied its chance to warm the room
swallowed up inside of voices like you