Aus dem Nichts

Woher kommst du?

Aus dem Traum,
den du gerade träumst

Bin ich dann
deine Traumfrau?

Ja

Bist du sicher,
daß ich keine Alptraumfrau bin?

In einem Traum
mag alles sein

Und in diesem Traum
bist du meins

Vielleicht
Kommst du mit?

Ja
Wohin?

Zu mir
ins Nichts

Ja,
ich komme mit

The Temple to Nothingness

The Temple to Nothingness was almost complete;
most of the stones had been removed
from what it had been before
and just a few traces of something
remained

The temple was round
and made of dark grey granite
There were no walls, no roof and no floor,
only pillars
and arches between them,
and a few steps leading up
to some stairs that led down
to an empty grass courtyard inside

No statues of deities
or carvings of gods
were to be found

No offerings were made,
no prayers were said,
no ceremonies were held
and
there was no guru

Instead,
stillness reigned

On the prowl

The evening fire had turned
into glowing embers and ash,
and the dogs and people had begun
to make their way through the dark and cool late autumn night
to the holes and huts in which they slept

♫ ♫ ♫

And when the crickets finally stopped singing,
the last two beings to leave the fire began to walk
slowly towards their beds

♫ ♫ ♫

Upon reaching the large eucalyptus tree
that stood watch near the entrance to the farm,
the dog took off
and ran faster than he ever had before,
reaching the tractor shed some fifty yards away
in three seconds or less
and leaving his human companion alone
with the leopard
that lay hidden in the shadows a few yards away

Silence reigned
for several moments,
and then the man continued walking
slowly to his room,
while the leopard waited patiently
for something else to eat
to wander into its lair

♫ ♫ ♫

Monday

Again it was Monday,
and the snakes on the farm felt it was safe
to move about

The cobras and pythons
and all of the others
left their tunnels and caves
and began to explore
the places they dared not go
when many people were around

♫ ♫ ♫

Quieter than usual,
because the workers had the day off,
Mondays were especially treasured,
and everyone enjoyed the silence

Thoomp!

A baby python dropped from a mango tree,
paused for a moment
and then slithered away,
too young to be a threat
to the farmer standing inches away

♫ ♫ ♫

Hidden in the tall grass
along the path leading to the compost heap,
a cobra quickly made its way
to the sugar cane field
as soon as it saw the farmer’s daughter
heading its way,
preferring to avoid
a violent encounter

♫ ♫ ♫

And as the farmer’s wife
on her dark green bike
came riding around a bend in the road,
a bright green viper was crossing,
heading south and towards the rocks

Both stopped
for a few tense moments
and waited to see what the other would do,
and then the snake continued on its way
and the farmer’s wife on hers,
pedaling west and back to the farm
to enjoy a lazy afternoon

♫ ♫ ♫

Into the dark

The smell of honey drifted
from the hive near the top of the eucalyptus tree
and mingled with the flames
that licked and danced their way
along the log that lay
upon the glowing embers
of those that had gone before
into the fire,
caressing the wood
as it shed its story
and turned into smoke and ash

♫ ♫ ♫

The story that had been ingrained in the tree,
the record of what had occurred before,
vanished without complaint,
and as the glow of the embers flowed
among the cinders and the ash,
two friends rose and walked into the dark,
leaving their stories behind