Illusion
I am dreaming
She is beside me I tell myself I’m dreaming But the pressure of her hand against mine feels too strong I wake up
She really is beside me Delirious joy
I turn on the lights Light bursts forth for a hundredth of a second then goes out (a rattling lamp) I embrace her
(I wake up: I am alone)
Georges Perec, La Boutique Obscure, translated by Daniel Levin Becker, Melville House 2013