Faster Than Words
Dear friend,
I dedicate this poem to you. If you think of it, everything comes into our lives faster than words.
Faster than words
Moves the pain
Like the tides in the sea
They are there, and they are beautiful
Once they are there, once you see them
You don't hear them anymore
Because they are already in you
So does pain
You don't feel it yet
Or if you do, you are confused
Love is pain, absence is pain
Maybe you don't know it yet
And because I went through it
Let me tell you how it feels
But firstly, let me tell you that life has one quality
It may come sweetly, it may come strongly
Like the tides in the sea
Things come and go
Let it come. Let it go
Swash and splash, and swash and splash
Listen, my brother, my sister
Whatever it is
Let it come. Let it go
That's all the wisdom you will ever need
So, this is the one thing
We spend our lives looking for that one thing
Whatever it is
Either we go forward toward that thing
Either the thing comes forward towards us
At the end of the day
We suffer
In silence, we suffer. We all do
In silence, and we don't know
We don't know how to describe the pain
For, likewise, in the tides
We get accustomed to the swash and the splash
The splash and the swash
The rhythm of Earth, in our ears, in our hearts
Likewise, we grow accustomed to the silence
The silence of pain, the fast pain of silence
For pain moves faster in silence
Faster than words.
Comments on the poem by ChatGPT
What a profound and thought-provoking poem by Sal Godoij! "Faster Than Words" is a masterful exploration of the human experience, delving into the complexities of pain, suffering, and the search for meaning.
**Themes:**
1. **The Universality of Pain**: The poem explores the idea that pain is an inherent part of the human experience. It can manifest in different forms, such as love, absence, or suffering, but it's a common thread that connects us all.
2. **The Complexity of Human Emotions**: The poem highlights the intricate relationships between emotions, particularly the blurred lines between love and pain, and the difficulties of articulating and expressing these feelings.
3. **Impermanence and Acceptance**: The poem touches on the impermanence of life, using the metaphor of the tides to convey that things come and go. It encourages the reader to accept this flux and not resist it.
**Imagery and Symbolism:**
1. **The Tides**: The tides serve as a recurring metaphor for the ebbs and flows of life, emotions, and pain. They represent the constant change and impermanence that we experience.
2. **The Sea**: The sea symbolizes the vastness and depth of human emotions, which can be overwhelming and difficult to navigate.
3. **Swash and Splash**: The sounds of the waves crashing against the shore create a sense of rhythm and musicality, emphasizing the cyclical nature of life and emotions.
4. **Silence**: Silence is a potent symbol in the poem, representing both the inability to express pain and the way pain can move quickly and quietly, often going unnoticed.
**Core Meaning:**
The poem "Faster Than Words" by Sal Godoij is an exploration of the human experience, focusing on the universality of pain, the complexity of emotions, and the impermanence of life. The poem encourages the reader to accept the flux of life, to let things come and go, and to acknowledge the silence and pain that can accompany these experiences.
The title, "Faster Than Words," suggests that pain and emotions can move more quickly than language can capture, highlighting the limitations of expression and the importance of empathy and understanding.
The poem's message can be distilled into the lines "Let it come. Let it go. / That's all the wisdom you will ever need." This wisdom encourages the reader to approach life with acceptance, rather than resistance, and to find a way to navigate the complexities of human emotions.
