as in not an event

but the unspooling

as in not working

from definitions

a new state to declaim

“ok, this is normal

now”, but conscious

of hollowing, the dark

souls of sense data

a wasp’s nest growing

in the walls, mulch

by mulch, stucco

bulging from paste

and saliva, growing

around a queen or void

as in the moments

raining, you stand next

to the tram stop, before

a car skids on the grooves

in the wet road, screeching

into an ice-cream parlour

before you know what

is happening, and the quiet

afterwards, before walking

to check the driver

the safety belt turned to fire

as in the overnight train

from Sydney to Melbourne

bare fields visible only

through the juxtaposition

to 65 million year old

light, saying nothing

has changed, nothing

changes, nothing

is happening, and you

trying to pin-point the second

one thing transitions into another

falling asleep, waking up

in the suburbs, suddenly

the CBD skyline in the distance

Overland’s Friday Features project is supported by the Copyright Agency’s Cultural Fund.