he is positioned to catch good light
on his back with one leg held straight
the other bent upwards
the temperature is a little less than
warm
and the hairs of his legs and arms and
stomach
have stiffened slightly
noticeably
as an easel
brushes and colours are readied
he is quite still
with eyes seeming focused
towards a far corner of the ceiling
or beyond
but in truth the gaze ends
only a short distance into the air before
him
at a place where he has conjured
a lined page from inside his mind
and an image of his hand holding a pen
in the act of writing verse
about an artist and her model
he is quite still
but cannot think perfectly in this medium
an error needs erasure
by a hand raised and finger pointed
to stroke mistake away
the impression caught on canvas
is a study of stillness
in the act of correcting creation