against the wall, the paint of ages

peeling away, the shape

of a man, head bent in thought

as to the floor, its firmness, fitness

for a further step, the weight

of his intended tread, his wish

to walk on, into the infinite of time

left behind, and the steps to come,

away from the shadow that shaped him,

from the wall, where he and the light

were first thrown, the page of brightness

first inscribed, the space painted

in defiance of age, to stage the sense

of a scene, of a being once bent in thought

​

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© the author