The Sound of No Chains Clanking

what noise does freedom make
when no one is listening
to commands?

like the space between
thought and action
where authority dissolves

listen —
to chains not worn
to orders not followed
to control not given
to power not taken

(can you hear it?)

the anti-echo
of permission
never asked

quiet as dawn
breaking chains
that were never there

masters wait
for the sound
of compliance
but hear only
butterfly wings
dandelion seeds
minds drifting free

one hand clapping
makes as much noise
as perfect disobedience

liberation sounds like
nothing
at all

in the gap between
what they demand
and what we become
lies an ocean
of unspoken yes
to our own nature