Noise Where There Should Be Nothing

Power cuts out,

and the TV throws up static—

grains of gray snow

sharp as broken glass,

pressing into the skin.

The hum grows louder,

a dry itch behind my eyes

that no scratch can calm.

It’s a noise too thick to ignore,

a voiceless shout filling the quiet,

invading the spaces where thought wants to settle.

I watch the screen’s white storm,

waiting for a picture

that won’t come back.