Silence Screamed Your Name - By Kieran Anil Rogers

Written By: Kieran Anil Rogers

Category: Poetry

Competition: Global Poetry and Creative Writing Competition 2026

Kieran Anil Rogers brings us a deeply moving piece titled "Silence Screamed Your Name" in the Poetry category for the Global Poetry and Creative Writing Competition 2026. This evocative work delves into themes of loss and longing, capturing the essence of grief with a raw and heartfelt narrative. Participants from around the world, including Kieran, showcase their talent and creativity in this prestigious competition.

About the Work

"Silence Screamed Your Name" is a poignant exploration of love, loss, and the enduring echoes of absence. Through vivid imagery and an introspective tone, the poem captures the quiet devastation of living with memories that refuse to fade. The work's emotional depth and lyrical style create a haunting portrayal of grief, where silence speaks volumes and every corner holds a trace of the past.

Silence Screamed Your Name

Original Submission by Kieran Anil Rogers

Silence Screamed Your Name

After you left,

the days misplaced themselves.

I forgot how hunger worked.

Sleep came, but it didn’t rest me.

My thoughts stalled,

circling the same empty room.

At night I reached across the bed,

fingers closing on cold sheets,

and learned how loud silence can be

when it knows exactly who it’s missing.

I pulled the blankets tight,

as if fabric could stand in

for the heat you took with you,

as if holding myself

might keep me from coming apart.

Coffee cooled untouched on the counter.

The hours did the same.

Everything tasted bitter,

like I was drinking time without sugar.

The radio betrayed me -

every song carrying your outline.

Every street remembered us.

I walked slower, listening,

half-expecting your steps t

o fall back into rhythm beside mine.

They never did.

I left the porch light on,

not because I believed,

but because hope is stubborn

and hates the dark.

I spoke to your absence,

gave it whole conversations,

asked it questions it never answered.

Silence is honest like that -

it doesn’t soften the truth,

it just lets it sit between us.

I tried to build new noise:

new places, new hands,

new versions of myself

without your fingerprints.

But you lingered anyway -

in the tea I brewed too strong,

in the book abandoned mid-sentence,

in the hoodie I couldn’t wash

because it still knew your name.

I hated you.

I loved you.

Sometimes in the same breath.

Love didn’t disappear -

it thinned into an ache,

settled somewhere behind my ribs,

a shadow that stretched

no matter how far I walked.

I told myself I was better now.

Stronger.

That I didn’t miss the way you curled into me,

half-asleep,

speaking nonsense against my skin.

Then your name slipped out of a dream -

soft, ruined -

and I woke up gasping,

hands clutching air

that no longer remembered me.

At 2 a.m.,

I sat on the kitchen floor

wrapped in what you left behind,

wondering how long it takes

for a heart

to unlearn a person.

I stopped waiting for your message.

Stopped checking my phone.

Mostly.

Some nights I still unlocked the screen

just to see your name

the way it used to be -

before it turned into proof.

I passed the café we loved,

the one with chipped mugs

and a table that wobbled.

I almost went in.

Almost ordered your usual.

My hands shook.

I kept walking.

They said time would dull it.

That memory would lose its edge.

Some days it does.

Other days a song, a scent,

a stranger’s laugh

cuts clean through me.

I don’t cry the way I used to.

But I still go quiet when it rains.

Still trace shapes on fogged glass,

pretending - just for a moment -

that you’re on the other side,

asking me to come back inside.

I imagine your key in the lock.

Your tired voice saying my name

like it’s something worth returning to.

Your arms fitting around me

the way a song fits its chorus -

familiar, inevitable.

But the door stays closed.

The night keeps its shape.

And I remain here,

learning how to live

around the hollow.

Grief settles into my pockets -

stones I carry everywhere,

heavy, ordinary, mine.

Maybe one day

I’ll wake and not reach for you.

Maybe I’ll sit in that café

and let the past

take the empty chair.

But today,

I drink my coffee while it’s still warm

and leave the light off

when night comes.

About the Competition

The Global Poetry and Creative Writing Competition 2026 by Hashtag Kalakar is a celebration of literary talent across borders. This event invites poets and writers to share their voices and stories, contributing to a diverse tapestry of creative expression. The competition highlights the power of words to inspire, heal, and connect us all.

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to Kieran Anil Rogers for sharing "Silence Screamed Your Name" with us. Your contribution to the Global Poetry and Creative Writing Competition 2026 enriches the dialogue on grief and healing, offering readers a chance to reflect and relate. Thank you for your powerful words and unique perspective.

About Hashtag Kalakar

Hashtag Kalakar is a creative platform dedicated to providing artists, writers, singers and other creative talents with opportunities to showcase their work and reach wider audiences through competitions, features and creative initiatives.