OBSERVATION OF A PLAY IN WATER

To start, her footprints wet with water vanished, and next her cute dimples and innocent eyes vanished. Her pink nails, black curly hair, and knees were gone; by the time the blue sky vanished in a flash, flowers were gone and every possible letter vanished. Of course soldiers vanished as well as tools like gimlets, hammers, pliers and such, which was enough for me to surmise that thoughts must have vanished also. That is to say, all vanished, ranging from the most tangible to the most intangible.
 
To say “all vanished” to express this condition would be a trite means deployed by indolent poets, but in fact, “all vanished” also had vanished. This means “all vanished also had vanished” had vanished. But allowing no time for indulging in such word games, next moment, a very lively trout appeared, so did, in no time, a stream, a leather briefcase whose owner is unknown, the statute books, and thirteen minutes after two in the afternoon, while lovers were also beginning to appear. Thus in a flash of time, her footprints wet with water appeared again, and the bare tummy and the curled tummy button and the happy broad smile of Miss S (five years and five months of age) also appeared.

水遊びの観察

水遊びの観察

先ず初めに水に濡れた足跡が消え、次にはかわいいえくぼとつぶらな眼が消えた。桃色の爪が消え、黒い捲毛が消え、ひざこぞうが消える頃にはあっという間もなく青空が消え花々が消え、つづいて文字という文字が消えた。もちろん兵士等も消え、錐、金槌、ヤットコなどの工具類も消え、それは思想もまた消えたにちがいないと推測させるに十分だった。即ち最も確実なものから最も不確実なものまでが消えたのである。

こういう状態を、すべてが消えたと表現するのは怠惰な詩人の常套手段だが、実はその＜すべてが消えた＞も消えていたのであり、ということはこの＜すべてが消えたも消えていたのであり＞も消えてしまっていたのであるが、そんな字句の戯れにうつつをぬかす糸間もなく、次の瞬間には一匹のぴちぴちした鱒が現れた。と思う間もなくつづいて小川が、そして誰のものか分らぬ革鞄が、六法全書が、午後二時十三分が現れ、一方では恋人たちも現れ始めていた。そうしてまたたく間に水に濡れた足跡がふたたび現れ、かのS＊＊＊嬢（五歳五ケ月）の真裸のお腹とその真中の渦巻くおへそと上機嫌の笑顔もまた現れたのである。