what does a man who has learned a language know?
Aleksandra Komsta / pierdvlka
28th September 2022
the man speaks, speaks and speaks. I sit and listen. And listen, and listen. I touch, hug, I respond, I go home. I walk alone, counting all the moons in the side streets I pass. And the letters in their names. And the grains of sand between the bricks. I count all the cats, and all shirts hanging out on the balconies. I count all the blades of grass. Because tonight, they look like blades, and they do not resemble leaves at all. I cannot see them as leaves today, no matter how hard I try. And I guess, I just don't want to try and there is a reason behind it, or there is a feeling behind it. Talk to your guts more often. How can I talk to my guts, while they are digesting with such an effort? My guts are too busy to talk to me. I can just try to hear. Halo! How are you? It is so loud, down there. What have you just eaten? Or, when did you eat last time? How big was the meal? It feels like you ate a stone. It is 11:36, I type. "can stomach acid dissolve a stone?" You know what you're looking for, right? A pause for now. A cigarette, water, drying hair, putting on a blanket.
Why can't we digest rocks?
You will not believe where I went to find an answer. I've been everywhere. They say all the answers are on the Internet. I went to the gallery yesterday and saw a video: "All the answers are already there. My friend learned how to ski from a tutorial! He skied better than me." So why can't I learn how to dissolve a stone with my own body? Pause. The man speaks. "Rocks are, by definition, unreactive, because they are what remains after the most powerful reactions have subsided."
Why do I still feel like eating rocks?