Perception
Hearing the world from
behind a wall
is an act of conjecture:
the sound of the rain as it pools off a cement roof
various pumps and generators
whirring water up to cisterns
and power all around,
dogs barking
cell phones ringing their songs
like pathetic digital birds,
“yes, that's Doña's phone”
someone has just walked by with the same
bird/phone as me
“Nunca y nunca”
“aguacate”
(shouts from the street, someone selling something)
cars and motorcycles
and always, somewhere
the vigorous shuffle of dominoes.