Say there are swans

Say there is a river

The swans go back and forth as blood goes to and from the heart

Land closes in on the river and swans pile up at its narrowest point

The other swans have to seek an alternate route

The pile of swans hardens

If one of them breaks off now it will go forth in vengeance

To stop the lungs it thinks

To stop the heart

What if the medical industry allowed me to write the pamphlet on my illness

How much would they pay me

I could charge by the hour or swan

Just because swans are accustomed to appearing in human art does not mean they enjoy it

I go out to the pond where I keep them

There is unrest

I am scared all the time

We can split the profits I say

She worked for years on a book called The Translators

Translation is her only job

Her girlfriend has been very supportive

But when it was published the translator hid it from her

I don’t know why

When Dara’s grandchild says why Dara always says why not?

I don’t know why the translator herself became a celebrity and not the author

We have to leave New York the translator thought

Let’s take a vacation! she said

In Vienna!

Lies begin in one place and travel to another

Isn’t that your book? asked the girlfriend

She was pointing at a hardback edition tucked into someone’s bag on the Viennese subway

From here on you have to imagine her arm staying there in the same position

That’s your job

It was a miracle the girlfriend had not seen it already

The craze had overtaken Vienna too

I have never been to Vienna and don’t know why I dreamt this

Is the girlfriend's arm still pointing?

Keep it up

She only just asked the question

Digressions do not stop the timeline

The translator tried to think of how to explain

Shyness?

Confusion?

Why not?