The Necessary Exclamation

You must fix the approximate time ,the light, the colour;

at night when the horse-cab passes loaded with barrels,

on of its wheels crushes the pieces of plaster;

the joints of the wall creak. Behind the window panes

you can see opposite the white kitchen, the refrigerator,

the bare feet of the old man. Then, the bathroom light

goes on. They pull the curtain. The maid

takes a bowl of apples out on the balcony.

The gramophone is playing. You can't choose

between things with no relationship or contrast,

until the scream is heard and the knife is pushed into

the wooden table stabbing a paper napkin

with a perfect imprint of two painted lips.