The Quiet Hour
the afternoon, when the common room is empty and the upstairs is being aired.
(it is not quite the quiet hour yet — the page is more rewarding at dusk or evening)
— Pell's evening note —
Some hours are for walking and some hours are for sitting. This is one of the sitting hours. The chronicle is patient. The road will be there in the morning. The dragons will be there in the morning. Sit a moment. Look at the fire. The page will catch what needs catching.
— P
the room, just now
Two pilgrims arrived at the same time, and only one of them had reserved a bed. The other did not raise a fuss.
what the air carries
Pine resin from a courtyard cart of new-cut wood. Sharp, clean, hopeful.
what is on the table
A bowl of barley-water, a heel of bread, a wedge of yellow cheese. The cheese tasted of the cloth it had been wrapped in.
the close
The work, such as it was, was finished. The book closed itself. You closed your eyes.