The Piano

A note
rings out,
loud and clear,
above the silence
of the cold, unfeeling day.
Gradually,
the despondent peal fades.
Hollow impassivity returns.

 
The empty silence resumes.
No hearts beat.
No lungs breathe.
No ears heed.
The piano
strikes another key,
despairingly;
no sound is returned.

 
The stillness recapitulates.
The piano,
harsh and grating,
weights the keys,
burdens the pedal,
rents the sheet;
it cries to the emptiness.

 
The void responds
with languid muteness,
for no one hears

the piano.