J.J. Steinfeld – Ⅱ
Equidistant
fleeing from the centre of confusion
a place as central as the soul or language
you attempt to count your footsteps
their sound different this time
as though pain or injury
have altered sound and definition
then in your mind’s eye
you open a textbook full of instructive distances
and how to arrive at their calculation
with precision and belief:
equidistant between solitude
and the cacophony of a vociferous mob
is an achievable madness
the trick is in the measurement
in the pacing off between the two compass points
equidistant between deepest sleep
and most alert consciousness
is a slightly imperfect madness
once again, the measurement is the task
in finding the desired location
equidistant between captivity
and an idealized picture of freedom
is a raggedly imperfect madness
no need to measure these
for both can become what you fear
equidistant between lucidity
and darkness born from pain
equidistant between sense embracing myth
and the unforgiving reality of randomness
equidistant between achievable madness
and imperfect madness
are all the words you have ever heard
and cannot arrange into sense
as you flee
fleeing from the centre of confusion
a place as central as the soul or language
you attempt to count your footsteps
their sound different this time
as though pain or injury
have altered sound and definition
then in your mind’s eye
you open a textbook full of instructive distances
and how to arrive at their calculation
with precision and belief:
equidistant between solitude
and the cacophony of a vociferous mob
is an achievable madness
the trick is in the measurement
in the pacing off between the two compass points
equidistant between deepest sleep
and most alert consciousness
is a slightly imperfect madness
once again, the measurement is the task
in finding the desired location
equidistant between captivity
and an idealized picture of freedom
is a raggedly imperfect madness
no need to measure these
for both can become what you fear
equidistant between lucidity
and darkness born from pain
equidistant between sense embracing myth
and the unforgiving reality of randomness
equidistant between achievable madness
and imperfect madness
are all the words you have ever heard
and cannot arrange into sense
as you flee