--

one looks like a photographer,

only his eyes are too close to the action;

one looks like a councillor,

only I can't hear what she's saying;

another reminds me of my mother,

a little crazy, a little sad;

another has a mouth that falls away,

one looks into a cup of tea and reads

misery into the leaves; one holds a mop

and cleans like a lover, wiping up the pain;

one cooks food and prepares the conversation,

one sits alone with a pencil and pretends.