EPONINE HOWARTH
Strings 2
‘about lighthouses not having to move to save a ship’
September 2024
An (un)measured life
1 m 64. 26 cm. 3 m 02 cm. 57 cm. I measure the furniture, napkins, chairs, the table, armchairs, the television, windows, the fridge, curtains, shutters, plants, flowers, the door, its handle, the lock, a toothpick. 26 cm, the blade of a knife. Did you know that? and 1 cm wide. Thankfully, I already have the measurements for the apartment, as the estate agent kindly provided a detailed floor plan: 14 m2. But I carry on, I measure the length and breadth of the universe. 3.474 km, the diameter of the Moon. 12,742 km, the diameter of the Earth. There’s so much to take measure of. The doctor explains that I suffer from a disproportionate existence; a ‘benign infinity,’ she called it. A life without limits is madness. I smile like a sickly child. Her diagnosis: You need more measured behaviour, and she prescribes a measuring tape, that I purchase at the nearest pharmacy. I’ve been measuring things ever since. Though I do take measure the immensity of the task, it keeps me busy, and it’s allowed for a tailored-made life. I find comforting to know that everything has a beginning and an end.
CHANGE OF HORIZON(TAL)
they removed the road sign
at the roundabout
and someone started
a lawsuit against the commune
what
THEY REMOVED THE ROAD SIGN
hey
it's not politics
so
stop shouting
i forgot my hearing aids
it’s gone
so people don't know
what to do
and
everyone crosses it
crushing the flowers
instead of going
around
it's a shame
says the gardener
i feel nauseous
of sadness
no, it's the alcohol
i notice that
the tiny ants
are carrying huge things
enormous enormous
like
mushrooms
and
sticks
i am
the ant
wandering
invisible
on the red brick
WARNING: GAS
on the ground
i walk over it
and nothing happens
no explosion
strange
i avoid the lines
levitate
like a bird
or a flying ant
i feel so small
EPONINE HOWARTH (1996, Brussels) is a Franco-British footballer, writer, translator, and editor. She writes poems, essays, lists, stories, and co-edits the literary magazine La Piccioletta Barca. She currently plays football for Ferro Carril Oeste (Buenos Aires, Argentina).
