When the Quiet comes

When the Quiet comes
slipping in on silent
satin-slippered feet

When the Quiet comes
sipping mint julip through
her perfect snow-white teeth

When the Quiet comes
all labor ends, our friends
stand aside as if to hide

Hoping somehow to cheat her
they cajole, implore, entreat her
but none will e'er defeat her.

She calmly pulls me to her breast
as swooning I am forced to rest
so drunken, so divinely blessed

No longer stressed, no more obsessed
at her behest, I close my eyes
release a sigh, a stifled cry and rise

To meet her lips
my arms around her hips
while our two souls merge

A distant solemn dirge
floats softly on the evening breeze
and the Quiet gently comes.