A Sociable Emptiness Poem by Charl JF Cilliers

Does the need not to be alone, I often wonder,
run deeper than merely a habit of desire
for the spectacular boredom of rolling thunder
after lightning flashes of witty retorts expire?

Nature abhors a vacuum, I have repeatedly been told.
Is that why so many so often seek a sociable emptiness?
Or is it perhaps the fear of that one unexpected cold
call of a singular visitant who cannot be dismissed?

But when he comes all conversation ends,
and there are no more crowds in any crowded places
who can speak for you, not even your closest friends.

He is the unwelcome visitor you cannot send
away who simply invades all your sociably guarded spaces,
insisting: “Be assured, I will still be here when the party ends.”