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A Sound Not Unlike A Bell

Dreamed c.2021 by Wendy Xu


In the dream last night I was desperately arranging cut flowers for something important
The practical uses of my work I was not made aware
Nobody was available to assist
Thus the flowers were strewn about the carpet beside me
I was compelled to finish my task by something greater than myself
The forces that acted upon me seemed to say "Your life depends upon this assemblage"
I took it as a warning, though provocative, though urgent and abstract
The bouquets were to be picked up as soon as I declared them finished
I admit, it felt good to be the lone member of mission control
There's no point in talking of how time passes in a dream; I worked for minutes
Perhaps I worked for years
The only accompanying sound was a song looping in my mind about the little sparrow
A Chinese folk song from somewhere, the past
I was so alone in my freedom to choose, but because I was under deadline, duress
I did not dare make a mistake
After some time, I stepped away from my work and admired the results
The outcome was beautiful, and because I had worked very hard, rare

SOURCE: Poetry collection The Past by Wendy Xu, 2021, p.8. The dream's just the opening of a long prose-poem, A Sound Not Unlike A Bell. Section untitled in the book.



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