What I Learned after His Stroke
Aphasia: Often without speech due to the partial or total
loss of the ability to use or comprehend spoken or
written language.
So much I may never know
but this I’ve learned:
He is happier in our smaller world,
happier with being left alone
to do what he can do.
He did not lose his love of puzzles,
or his spatial skills
when aphasia stole his words,
stroke broke his fluid motion.
He did not lose his smile
or his way of following,
listening close enough
to assure his memory.
I didn’t lose his staying power
though I often let-go my own,
find patience wearing thin,
filing sharp my too-loud words.
What I know is that we do not miss as much
what we imagine gone, as we delight
in what we manage to convey
within the sounds of silence.
