Rippling Silence

Once glassy and still,

The water gurgles and laps

Breaking the silence.

Black ducks are puddling

In the shade and cool of morn:

A refreshing sound.

I bathe alongside,

Not just an imagining -

Trust and communion.

They whisper and peep,

Muted, continuous sound -

Intimate contact.

Done, they clamber out,

To face the warming sunshine -

Busily preening.

They begin to doze,

Standing like dumpy statues.

Now they are silent.

The ripples subside,

The water, like a mirror,

All trace of them gone.