MS-UoR-1477-9

[0017] on the stone together in the sun on the stone at the edge
of the little wood and as far as eye could see the wheat
turning yellow vowing every now and then you loved each
other just a murmur not touching or anything of that nature
you one end of the stone she the other long low stone like
millstone no looks just there together on the stone in the
sun with the little wood behind gazing at the wheat or eyes
closed ^{[place = supralinear] all still} no sign of life not a soul abroad no sound

[0020] all still
just the ears leaves and ears and you too still on the stone
in a kind of daze not a word only everu ^{[place = overwritten] y} now and then to vow
you loved each other just a murmur one thing could ever bring
tears till they dried up altogether that thought when it came
up among the others floated up that scene

[0023] on the stone in the
sun gazing at the wheat or the sky or the eyes closed ^{[place = margin left] (eyes close)} nothing
to be seen but the wheat turning yellow and the blue sky vow-
ing every now and then you loved each other tears without
fail till they dried up altogether suddenly there in whatever
thoughts you might be having whatever scenes perhaps way back
in childhood or the womb worst of all or that old Chinaman
long before Christ born with long white hair

[0026] or by the window
in the dark harking to the owl not a thought in your head
till hard to believe harder and harder to believe you ever
told anyone you loved them or anyone you till just one of
those things you kept making up to keep the void out just
another of those old tales to keep the void from pouring in
on top of you the shroud

^{[place = margin left] [0027] Silence}

[0031] muttering tht ^{[place = overwritten] a}t time together on the
stone in the sun or that time together on the towpath or that
time together in the sand that time that time making it up
from there as best you could always together somewhere in the
sun on the towpath facing downstream into the sun sinking

[0031] and the bits of flotsam coming from behind and drifting on
or caught in the reeds the dead rat it looked like that time
came on you from behind and went drifting on till you could
see it no more

[0034] no sight of the face or any other part never
turned to her nor she to you always parallel like on an axle-
tree never turned to each other just blurs on the fringes of
the field no touching or anything oc ^{[place = overwritten] f} thatnature that nature
always space between if only an inch no pawing in the mn ^{[place = overwritten] a}nner
of flesh and blood no better than shades if it wasn't for the
vows

[0037] stock still always stock still like that time on the
stone or that time in the sand stretched out parallel in the
sun gazing up at the blue with the glider or eyes closed blue
dark blue dark stock still side by side scene float up and
there you were wherever it might be

[0039] q ^{[place = overwritten] s}tock still side by side
in the sun then sink and vanish without your having stirred
any more than the two knobs on a dumbbell except the lids and
every now and then the lips to vow and all around too all still
all sides wherever it might be no stir or sound only faintly
the leaves in the little wood behind or the ears or the bent
or the rea ^{[place = overwritten] e}ds as the case might be of man no sight or sound

[0045] or alone in the same the same scenes making it up that way
to keep going keep it going keep it out on the stone alone
on the end of the stone with the wheat and blue or the tow-
path alone on the towpath with the ghosts of the mules the
drowned rat or bird or whatever it was floating off into the
sunset till you could see it no more nothing stirring only