Recalling a phone call
I didn’t answer
and the conversation we had
while the ringing and ringing continued

This was well after we had disconnected the line

You asked how I …
Where had I …
When I would …

The silence in between the questions
is what I remember most

It was a lesson
and the beginning of a quest
I can not hear it so clearly now
even in this stillness
especially when no one is around