Words fascinate me. They show love, hatred, excitement, disappointment, hope, and fear. They promise, convince, defend, tease, soothe, and incite. They can make a heart sing or suck the air out of a room. They change elections, expose scandals, influence opinions. They leave people laughing and they bring people to tears. Their permutations are endless, their uses infinite, their power immense.

As much as I love words, it is often their absence that stops me in my tracks. Perhaps it is precisely because words are such powerful purveyors of mood and meaning that the vacuum created in their absence feels overwhelming. While I can use words to argue against words, I can’t pit them against silence. Then end up either swallowed whole or becoming mere noise.

Think about it. Nothing makes a stronger statement than the pregnant pause. The phone that doesn’t ring. The message that doesn’t come. Or even words that fall on deaf ears.

The power of silence is indomitable; I have yet to find an effective weapon against it.