Tuesday, August 25, 2009

The Snake Of Humiliation

Filomena Fantora tells the future by
looking at her knitting, Bianca can
bring anything to life, dolls speak
ornaments move, illustrations are
animated

Marco has the gift of invisibility, enjoys
writing poetry, Francesca can change
the weather while aunt Varvara is a
vegetarian vampire, an uneasy com-
bination

Her husband Remo Lupino comes from
a long line of illustrious Italian werewolves
I sigh in perfect contentment, this is exactly
the kind of family I want to read, dream, talk
think about

My favourite is Marco the poet, he knows
invisibility is a prerequisite when exposing
his feelings and thoughts; today I shall be
invisible also, wear my earphones to block
the sounds of conflict

As Jane, who does not know how to be humble
and obedient, rebels against the guidance sup-
plied by June who cut her teeth in a teaching
environment and cannot understand the inability
of her latest student

To submit to rules of any kind, does not comprehend
a bureaucracy is a game of snakes and ladders where
you throw the dice to be swallowed by the snake of
humiliation until you ascend the next ladder again
only to fall and break your neck…

Adèle Geras “The Fantora Family Photographs”
Hamish Hamilton 1993 - Quotes from pp. 1-4

2 comments:

matt at shadow of iris said...

"To submit to rules of any kind, does not comprehend
a bureaucracy is a game of snakes and ladders where
you throw the dice to be swallowed by the snake of
humiliation until you ascend the next ladder again
only to fall and break your neck…"

Perhaps its a career not a calling. ;-)

Margaret Alice said...

I believe you are right, it is a career, not a calling. It is the same kind of thing as soldiers fighting war from the trenches, not doing anything else - just being there, just suffering together, just manning their post -and discovering the privilege and joy of loyalty and integrity to each other and their calling - and it is a wonderful experience.

Dying Eventually

Listening to my favourite Internet guru, quite clearly this works for many people as they repeat the jargon flawlessly and I wish I could ge...