7 
elements of my consciousness rotting and melting. 
I have only to give utterance to a few more of such 
notions and it is all over with my chances of getting 
back to the land of clocks. And yet, it is the gradual 
disintegration of my personality that I have the strongest 
misgivings about. Since I am alone I cannot go mad. 
The sponges of silence, the crystals of vacuum, where 
was I amongst them? I hurry on, bicyclist lost after 
the departure of the rear wheel, maintaining myself 
miraculously by one perpetual revolution. Equilibrium 
denotes nothing but unstable position, or habitual 
difficulty, if you will. Yes, crawling fear has its little 
day of terror. I choke now and then through forgetting 
to breathe at regular intervals. Sensuousness in this 
brothel-world! Best not to think of it. The geometrical 
progression of lust is not conceived as apart from all 
continuity. The four operations, very nice to talk about. 
Fly in sticky-paper, inkwell of clouds, who will give 
me back the fancy-cake with an Eiffel Tower relief, 
the City of Light, as it is called. 
LOUIS ARAGON