Page 96 - Language is an Intangible Bridge

this is what distance feels like you there, and me here
me here and you there squares taped on the floor
this is what closeness feels like you there, me here,
me here, you there, mobile architectures that keep us safe,
you can taste the safety in your mouth. It tastes
like that. Simultaneously, you
can taste the risk. It tastes like this.
From here to there, from there to here.
Anne Fernald writes that ‘sound is touch at a distance’
What does language feel like, at a distance? What is distance in language encounters? Is it the distance between where the words and their affects emerge and where the words and their effects land?
Right now, could you turn your back to your device and feel the sound touching through your back space? Can you feel the sound touching the filigree of your hair?
With your back to the camera,
Could you feel the back of your neck, your shoulder blades, differently?
alys longley short talks