Never Start Something You Can Finish Poem by Sridala Swami

The poet dreams a painting. She owns it or a part of it with two other people she does not know. Which part of it does she own?

In the painting there is a tree, a mountain and something that could be an open mouth but when she looks directly at it, it becomes the colour rust. The mouth should belong to the sky because it spits out possibilities and the tree has a branch hacked down though the mountain remains as steadfast or true as it is possible for the poet's time-bound eyes to comprehend.

Who are these other two people who own the rest of the painting? The poet has heard their voices come down the line like an experiment but there are no slots in her memory for them. They are waves masquerading as particles. When she thinks of them she thinks of rust.