poetry contest - runner up: CJ Pritchett - Silence

In the crowded restaurant
a toddler screams behind
our table split between
two conversations.
 
I drift from both,
   my words falling dormant,
      and study the aquarium
         beyond the table,
 
            nod to the trapped slate parrotfish,
                        and the motion draws
                                    its silver eye,
                                                but I glance away--
 
the waiter had brought
            sorbet in tiny cups for us,
                         and as we regroup, I think
                                    it was a kind trifle.                 Then
 
we resume,                 and I sink
            in-between,                 words trapped
                        within ice,                   longing
                                    for nothing,                carving
 
with the little spoon
            sorbet in thin shavings,
                        numbingly sweet
                                    like winter spent        
alone.