Presence

“Can you hear the time?”
asked the art teacher.

“What??”
he responded,
bewildered.

“The time.
Can you hear it?”
she asked again.

“What the hell
are you talking about?!”
he asked,
now annoyed.

“…”
she paused.

“Can you tell me what time it is
without looking at your watch.”
she eventually spoke again.

“No.
I can’t.”
he replied,
indignantly.

“Just a few moments ago,
the church bell rang
to indicate noon.
If you want to make art,
I want you to learn
to be present enough
to hear that.”
she replied.