Oral Exam in Active Civic Engagement

by Kári Tulinius

1)
Thinkofa nelephant
Stop thinking ofa nelephant

Thinkofa planet without elephants and don’t thinkofa nelephant
which isn’t hard most planets are elephantless

Thinkofa mountain wheran elephant should be
buddont thinkofa nelephant

Thinkofa mountain range thatsslikea nelephant herd
buddont picturea nelephant  

Thinkofa mountain range onna planet where
therar no elephants
buddont thinkofa nelephant
cuzyu live ina city ina valley ina mountain range onna planet  }
where therar no elephants don’t thinkofa nelephant  

2)
Be worth
be billions
be a mountain of bills
walk into the storm
let billions be blown away
let the paper dance in the tempest
never forget when you are all that is left
that you are not a human being
you were thrust up out of the earth
you are landscape
be mountain  

3)
Runintoa wall
isnt the texture of your pain beautiful
runintoa wall
happiness lives beyond the darkness
runintoa wall
ifya keep atit itll budge inthend
runintoa wall
if thousands hit the wall itll fall
runintoa wall
on their own each blood cell has little value
runintoa wall
the cascade is beautiful in its might not the droplet
runint
runint
run

4)
Build a bomb
blow up

No new world is created
build a bigger bomb
blow up

If a new world isnt created build a bigger bomb
blow up until the blast is big enough to create a new world
a universe you can carry in your exploded arms
enfold it in your arms and press it to your stomach
you will caress the universe as it grows
and someday a new one will fill the old
you and everything you know by heart
will only exist as flattened pictures
on the periphery of the universe you’re exploding into life

Translated by Larissa Kyzer.