Last week Thursday I presented my thesis. After five months of plodding in the same spot on the library’s fourth floor, the last day of thesis work finally arrived. My spot was a specific chair on which I was to be found most of the time recently. That Wednesday, my motivation wasn’t what it had been this last period. Suddenly, the quiet was more a distraction than a help. I wasted half an hour staring at the monotonous stream of leisurely paces towards the bathroom. Without realising it. Instead of wrapping up my presentation, I started writing the following poem:
On the way to…
The way, or rather, the catwalk to the toilet,
is truly the only reason everyone put on
pants this morning.
Really,
girls with billowing
shirts and bootcut jeans,
guys, with one hand in their
pocket and the other swinging
a bottle back and forth.
The etiquette of
the library, I guess
the only way one has
ever thought about that
was out of
pure procrastination
(Like me right now)
When all one looks for
is distraction,
anyone can be an attraction.
When I finally abandoned the library and my beloved chair at six p.m., I could not yet wrap my head around the fact that I wouldn’t be sitting there again tomorrow. I am a creature of habit, and although writing my thesis was not the best time of my life, it provided structure and a reason to get up in the morning. On the other hand, I can’t wait to do new things in the time that has now become available. More time to garden, brew ginger beer, bake bread and make music. But for now, I am behind my computer, jotting down new ideas. Ideas for stories, projects, or a poem like the one above. But, no longer about the library, that’s for sure. You will find me in that chair, in the garden, for the time being.
Livia Franssen is a second-year Bachelor’s student of Environmental Sciences, and lives at Droef.