the left hand of darkness
change
of plans again i hop off the train
a clear night
twelve eleven
snowing again
change of either or
ten nine eight i scan
my card change change of seven
six yes a hotel room
cuba libre guitars the gospel
the morning star on the screen
yes five four login password
change of plans again
i hop off the train with a new
identity a new beat
a new ypakoë
a time to cast away stones
a workaholic in a glass elevator
swallows a pill for fatigue for anxiety for uncertainty
beyond the windows opening into infinity lies
a junkyard and two lakes
the man shrugs off his glimmering suit jacket
he tries to ignore the jolting ascent of the machine
a cable car named most splendid business in the world
there is a time to wake up a time to scream into the phone a time to cast away stones
and a time to gather stones together a time to embrace a time to disappear like a ghost
a time to know when to stop a time to delay time like a snap-off box cutter
you’re the clint eastwood of middle management
and the melody of your pocket watch has just cut off so you whip out
your credit card and become
one of the heroes of the uprising against mondays and tuesdays
and fatigue anxiety and uncertainty
your hands tremble
and you smoke opium
like in a movie
you’re not even playing in
you’re a pretty person on a warpath
you hardly get any sleep
you believe in chemtrails the red white ‘n’ blue pill
you make death threats against people around you but mainly against yourself
you abandon dogmata
you cut yourself
the lord god is trying to tell you something
the next day you wire money from one bank account to another
as if you have any idea what you’re doing
witch house blasting in your headphones energy drinks coursing through your veins
till the last minute hope or persecutory delusions
a time to smash through the glass a time to jump a time to freeze in mid-air
a time to fall in love with someone from the office
time as denial of time
tell me who you are
and i will tell you who you are
hang in there
your hands tremble
as you concentrate on the reset button
you’re not even playing
the elevator screeches to a halt
and your story takes on a new dimension
your headache is back you don’t know what you want
the next day you obliterate the establishment
with your platinum card a power drill a grin
all your things fit into a single
cardboard box
you swallow a pill for fatigue for anxiety
for certainty
someone from the office gives you a goodbye
kiss on the forehead
there is a time to go into hiding a time to set an example
a time to rewrite your identity a time to stay where you are
time as a gesture
you’re heading for the next level
and taking with you a portrait of a woman
who reminds you
of your mother
Translated by Tereza Novická