Mise en Abyme – 2nd November 2025

~ shaun tenzenmen

*The old librarian still searches for
himself among the shelves. Glasses half-cocked,
hanging on to his nose, rubbing eyes, sore
from a thousand years of dust, sunlight blocked,
but his thirst for knowledge cannot be stopped.
Owlish and wizened with yellowy skin,
slowly but surely, the light will seep in
and he’ll remain his days meditating
on the fact he’s just about to begin
the journey for which he has been waiting.

Shared with dVerse: dizain.
*I had noted down this first sentence from Björn’s poem ‘The Past at Present’ last month, thinking that I would use this idea for something new. Having then forgotten about it until today, I ended up using it word for word to launch this particular write.

16 thoughts on “Mise en Abyme – 2nd November 2025”

  7. The details you supply, the light, the dust, the wizened yellowy skin, all in aid of characterizing this aged knowledge-bound man makes us feel all the more sympathetic to his journey to find himself, “about to begin.” The wait is over. The mystery is the discovery. A wonderful dizain, Shaun. I truly enjoyed it.

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