[Matt Q]

After the universe exploded

After the universe exploded
Large chunks of matter whizzed around
In the space where the sky used to be
Which was extremely dangerous
And everyone stayed inside
Just to be on the safe side
And those of us with experience of staying inside
From our lives before the universe exploded
Gave advice to the others
And felt a little smug

But really there was no outside left
It had exploded along with the rest of the universe
And that meant there was also no inside either
Which really was extremely dangerous
But we stayed inside anyway
Because we thought it would be safer
And those of us with experience of pretending to exist
From our lives before the universe exploded
Gave advice to the others
And felt a little smug
.

[Glenn Wright]

Very effective parable on how our tribalism and triumphalism will outlast the universe. The repetition, mirroring, and simple, direct language give it bite.

[Matt Q]

Thanks for commenting Glenn, I'm glad you found things to like. And thanks for telling me how you read it, too. That's something I'm always interested to hear.

Best,

Matt

[David Callin]

Well, if you want to know how I read it, it's as a clever and affecting mash-up of fears brought on by the perceived approach of the apocalypse together with a wry - and slightly self-ridiculing - view of the artist as someone who has known smaller (but not small) worries for much much longer.

How accurate that is, I don't know, of course. But I like it for what I think it is, anyway.

Cheers

David

[John Riley]

What I read Matt is the end of the universe. Time's up and the planet has exploded and the narrator may or may not be reporting from the inside. First, he's cocky but then realizes that there can't be an inside without an outside. Perhaps he is something else now? I like the hermit POV. Someone who is well-skilled from experience in being cooped up finally has a moment of comeuppance over the people he/she has envied before. I don't know if that is what you intended but I like thinking of it that way.

What I'm of two minds about is the type of narration. The flatness is like a report, a scientific report, or a newspaper article, which fits quite well. There is a bit of me, however, that wants a little more spark, and frisson in the language. That is secondary, though.

Overall, I like it.