Paella

The Sound of Silence

By: Charles Giuliano - Dec 16, 2015

Paella

Barcelona
Bright Sunday morning
After Picasso Museum
Lunch
Exploring side streets
Charming bistro
Ordered paella
Observed
Elderly couple
Consuming their meal
In utter silence
Not a word spoken
Staring straight ahead
Eating with deliberation
No interaction
We wondered
Will that be us some day
Our now twenty plus
Years of marriage
What drove them
To that solitude
Nothing left to say
Kids all grown
Grandchildren likely
It was so strange
Much later
Still recalled
So vividly
Now and then
We mention it
The occasional
Pause in our
Busy lives
Filled with
Constant conversation
That stillborn meal
In Spain