Be distracted along the way,
from the window look only at your reflection,
don’t focus on any detail,
not on the faces not on the walls
look for things that aren’t obvious right now,
chase away the people you see along your shadow,
nothing separates you and the floor
open the lock put the envelopes on the table,
disinfect everything disinfect everything
do not let in any natural or artificial light,
seal the impurity, the outside,
avoid the road, you can’t control anything on the road
wall the windows
Electrical tape over each slot
Each window overlooks closets
Called “squares”,
blind your world,
put bandages on the wishes and make them bump into each other
make a fire, try not to produce light that is minimally natural,
use light bulbs, pack your bags, to leave outside the house
hands don’t create don’t destroy,
don’t contemplate real people in your life,
make them fading away as you did with yourself
just think of superheroes, Mickey Mouse and Duckburg
you don’t need life you don’t need stairs you don’t need gates,
all you need are small routines to photocopy
liturgies to chase in the mirror, sift through each photo
whitens the portraits desertifies the people around you,
store your nails in a jar
take care of every detail of the apocalypse
there’s a conclave in the living room, I think they want to make you a saint but they won’t succeed,
try to be profane but never vulgar,
stack the objects that most oppress you in the bedroom, fix them,
while they stare at you,
feed the fire,
make sure the flame does not illuminate,
all set turn on each screen
walled up alive accompanied by your fake wife
leaves only a loophole for home deliveries
prepare some fake ropes where you will hold on
when the floor is impassable,
because the Turks are coming back
decorate your home like a provincial station
do not give the idea that trains and passengers can pass through there
tear your limbs apart with boredom,
waste your energy,
bother yourself,
look at yourself so much in the mirror until you disappear
at the end of the roundabout you will find an old woman and a child in the living room
do ignore them,
play on the pc until you lose memory of the roads travelled
settling for life out there is the worst defeat,
leave no trace of you
disinfect, disinfect everything
realize your absence –
Francesco Tardio (Italy, 2000) – translated from Italian by #slowwords