The Library of Silence

 

I lived in a silent library full of no books

it was a hollow echo chamber of nothingness

The shelves were bare and covered with dust

few visitors bothered to enter as there was no reason

 

Learning was basic as it depended on spoken words

only one's memory was able to retain and store

Conversation and dialogue were certainly not encouraged

often it was strictly forbidden mostly due to age

 

I grew up in this library of no books

until the golden day when television arrived

This drew a veil which covered conversation

as we sat in silence as recipients along with many others

 

I was poorly educated as I knew so little of anything

certain subjects were taboo or hidden from view

We spoke only when spoken to, a new tongue

a mundane language, two for the price of one

 

The library of silence had three rules or codes

Bless this House O Lord we pray

Silence is Golden

Little boys should be seen and not heard

 

I was barely educated or adult by the age of eighteen

I left the library as soon as I was able

Into a world of sophistication and knowledge

I was ill equipped and stared in amazement and wonder

 

Only then did I realise that I had been abused and deprived

by the ignorant, the stupid and those afraid to think

I became known as a late developer or so they said

due to having membership at the Library of Silence