Whispers In Gaelic

She spoke it only when she cried
Words too sacred to survive
A cradle tongue now fading fast
Like songs that never learned to last

I heard it once behind a door
Soft syllables across the floor
A prayer, a warning, maybe both
Something warm beneath the oath

I never learned, but I still ache
For every sound I couldn't make

Whispers in Gaelic float through my sleep
A language I borrowed but couldn't keep
They echo like rain on the old tin roof
Saying love has more than one kind of truth
I try to answer, but can't begin
So I just listen, to whispers in Gaelic

They told her school would wash it clean
Too wild, too old, too in-between
But in her humming, it survived
A half-remembered lullaby

It's not gone, just out of sight
Hiding in the way I write

Whispers in Gaelic float through my sleep
A language I borrowed but couldn't keep
They echo like rain on the old tin roof
Saying love has more than one kind of truth
I try to answer, but can't begin
So I just listen, to whispers in Gaelic

If I could learn it, I'd speak your name
The way it was meant, without the shame
I'd sing the words you held so tight
And give your silence back its light

Whispers in Gaelic float through my sleep
Calling me home from somewhere deep
They echo like wind in a field of gold
Saying stories never do what they're told
I try to answer, and let them in
One breath closer... to whispers in Gaelic