Under Ideal Condiitons

 

 

say in the flattest part of North Dakota

on a starless moonless night

no breath of wind

 

a man could light a candle

then walk away

every now and then

he could turn and see

the candle burning

 

seventeen miles later

provided conditions remained ideal

he could still see the flame

 

somewhere between the seventeenth and eighteenth mile

he would lose the light

 

if he were walking backwards

he would know the exact moment

when he lost the flame

 

he could step forward and find it again

back and forth

dark to light light to dark

 

what's the place where the light disappears?

where the light reappears?

don't tell me about photons

and eyeballs

reflection and refraction

don't tell me about one hundred and eighty-six thousand

miles per second and the theory of relativity

 

all I know is that place

where the light appears and disappears

that's the place where we live

 

photo Linde Waidhofer: less than ideal conditions, but still. . . .