{"id":4880,"date":"2026-01-07T15:00:09","date_gmt":"2026-01-07T20:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hdhstory.net\/Storyblog\/?p=4880"},"modified":"2026-01-07T15:00:09","modified_gmt":"2026-01-07T20:00:09","slug":"ode-to-a-contronym","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hdhstory.net\/Storyblog\/?p=4880","title":{"rendered":"Ode to a Contronym"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ode to a Contronym<\/b>*<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Silence is a special word; its meaning is unclear.<\/span><\/p>\n

It calms the nerves and lets us think of things that we hold dear.<\/span><\/p>\n

But there are times when making noise is just the way to go<\/span><\/p>\n

Remaining silent and not speak out, will only aid your foe<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The noise of summer, I can\u2019t stand, lawn crews drive me insane<\/span><\/p>\n

When power tools and grinding trucks do naught but fill my brain.<\/span><\/p>\n

Where tinnitus has staked a claim and leaves its constant hiss<\/span><\/p>\n

There is no silence I\u2019d refuse, just for a moment\u2019s bliss<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

And then there\u2019s news for me to view that always floods the air.<\/span><\/p>\n

Where truth evades, and falsehoods reign, the blathering is there<\/span><\/p>\n

How I could wish for silence, and have all those fools clam up<\/span><\/p>\n

Is that too hard? Just pull the plug, put sleep drugs in their cup.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

For silence is the very thing that lets us live each day<\/span><\/p>\n

Let\u2019s have it now and live in peace. That\u2019s what the people say<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What\u2019s that, I\u2019m wrong, we must make noise, you think we must speak out<\/span><\/p>\n

Do not shut up, but state our thoughts, it\u2019s this we all should tout?<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A baby\u2019s coo, a gentle rain, are sounds that can abound<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s quiet noise, that makes us smile, that kind should stick around<\/span><\/p>\n

A great applause for some great feat, to someone who achieved<\/span><\/p>\n

And one who fought for what was right, for those who still believed<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

For silence can mean we give up, or maybe we don\u2019t care.<\/span><\/p>\n

Of things that others do to us, we know that aren\u2019t fair<\/span><\/p>\n

Things will not change if we don\u2019t share our thoughts when things are wrong<\/span><\/p>\n

Our silence lets the ones in charge believe we go along<\/span><\/p>\n

——–<\/p>\n

Oh, “silence” word, how can you be so strong and yet so meek<\/span><\/p>\n

To let the world not know what\u2019s right to speak or not to speak<\/span><\/p>\n

Perhaps it\u2019s we who must decide when time is right for noise<\/span><\/p>\n

Or when the time\u2019s appropriate to demonstrate some poise<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

If it\u2019s too loud, and floods the air with noise so you can\u2019t think.<\/span><\/p>\n

Then find a way to mute its force, so you\u2019re not on the brink.<\/span><\/p>\n

But if there\u2019s wrong, and you don\u2019t fight, your silence leads the way<\/span><\/p>\n

For those who are in power now, to claim another day.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

You must decide which way to go; the choice is yours to make.<\/span><\/p>\n

Silence or make noise, just get it right for heaven\u2019s sake!<\/span><\/p>\n

* A contronym is a single word that has two opposite meanings, such as dust or left.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ode to a Contronym*   Silence is a special word; its meaning is unclear. It calms the nerves and lets us think of things that we hold dear. But there are times when making noise is just the way to … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[465,7],"tags":[125,177],"class_list":["post-4880","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-original-poem","category-story-writing","tag-noise","tag-writing-prompt"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hdhstory.net\/Storyblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4880","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hdhstory.net\/Storyblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hdhstory.net\/Storyblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hdhstory.net\/Storyblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hdhstory.net\/Storyblog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4880"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.hdhstory.net\/Storyblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4880\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4881,"href":"https:\/\/www.hdhstory.net\/Storyblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4880\/revisions\/4881"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hdhstory.net\/Storyblog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4880"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hdhstory.net\/Storyblog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4880"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hdhstory.net\/Storyblog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4880"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}