> You are in a room. You cannot see anything.

Walk forward

> You walk forward and hit a wall. There is a switch and a door.

Turn on light

> You turn on the light, and can see a desk and chair
> to the East, a window to the North, and a door to the South.

Walk to desk

> You walk to the desk, on which there is a computer screen
> and keyboard. There is also a cup of coffee, a packet
> of cigarettes, and a box of matches.

Drink coffee

> You take a sip from the coffee. It is hot, and bitter.
> Pieces of the coarse beans from the brew get stuck
> between your teeth.

Open door

> The door is locked.

Unlock door

> The door is locked from the outside. You cannot unlock the door.

Open window

> The window does not open.

Look out of window

> Out of the window you can see people walking on the
> street below. They look very small. You are high up.

Sit on Chair

> You sit on the chair at the desk

Light cigarette

Contemplate meaning of life

Pretend to be a great French philosopher

She walks in
there is a “hello”
and they talk
briefly
a gossip veneer for
co-conspirators
all the while
with him, looking on
with sideways views
until a second greeting
this one closed to
new debate
after the formality of introduction

She who smiles
and he who frowns
look together
at the squirrel
caught against the
side of the garden shed

its
little feet
hanging limp
and trapped
neck snapped
and tail
brushed by the wall

they
stare blankly
unfocussed
unclear
how it got there
or what to do next

this doesn’t appear in
the home manual
and besides
thinking is
for the others
and
something for the uninitiated

Think of a very shallow premise, and
write it down as a short title. Then write
the first sentence, breaking the
line up after a few words so that, to the
unititiated, it looks a little like a stanza

Repeat, as each thought enters
your head.

Omit half of the punctuation but
instead add
additional emphasis
via one or two words alone on a line

Get sidetracked by the TV, the shininess of the
pixels on the computer, or simply forget the
overall purpose
and meaning of the work

Give up after three or four verses, and
go to the pub.

in the evening, we went down to the lake. There were
small fires burning from the others, the air
sweet and heavy, and rich with the noise of
constant movement

they looked at us as strangers, first, until passive
acceptance took over. Much easier for both sides that way
and we shared the bottles and the food amongst ourselves
as the evening moved to night

the shore of the lake was lit by a giant moon and we
bathed in its etherial silver glow. Music played with
laughter, each competing for our senses by its
own itensity

silent sounds filled the night, and the innocent canvas
of our dreams. We slept late, and well, the stroking of
passive water gentle against our slumber when
movement slid to rest

they sit
side by side
the sounds washing over
and through
their thoughts as
the day draws to a close

against the tide
their hands
reach by instinct
to protect and
comfort
each and the other

she whose voice
speaks with love
and he
listening and joining
the flow of each
in perfect drift

The smiles
and
laughter
of the eve
stay in memory
from then
through the
reflection of
the week’s end
and the days since
apparent non contact
was made

He drove them home
with little in conversation as
you don’t have to talk when
there’s nothing to say

Closing the front door she
thanked him, and
pulled the handle
closed tight

Don’t go

Possible outcomes
bounced against their thoughts
unspoken, now locked in
house and car

Instead, nothing

just weak smiles and
thanks
of an evening completed
for another week

Ameneded 4 June 2014

The caputured reflection
fights
against the prisen glass
wall of the mirror
each smile of the face
contemptuously returned
as it presses to make
its escape