Timothy de Paris Portfolio +
Four Act Dream
Act I
Renovations to my house had recently been completed. The renovations were extensive, with the only recognisable part of my original house being the bathroom. A water pipe in the bathroom was broken, and a large amount of water flowed freely into the downstairs level of the house.
On the downstairs level was a single bedroom. This room was accessed by a ladder. The ladder was able to be climbed down head-first, as though there was no gravity; however this was the only section of the house where this applied. Inside this room were three elderly ladies taking tea. There was no sign of the water flowing from the bathroom pipe. It became apparent that these ladies had decided to occupy this room permanently, so I moved on.
Moving around the house were a great number of people, regardless of the time of day. I did not recognise any of these people as I was unable to focus on them. Their chatter was also only ambient background noise.
In the kitchen of the house I met my sister. She produced a copy of the house plans and told me that there were not enough cupboards along the west wall of the kitchen. I looked at the wall and determined that there were enough cupboards, counting six in total. My sister once again stated that there were not enough cupboards, and pointed to the corresponding wall on the house plans. There were eight cupboards specified. I was not concerned about the number of cupboards.
My bedroom was at the front of the house, in the living room. This frustrated me considerably, as there was a constant stream of people entering and exiting the house via the front door, leaving me no privacy.
I went to the back of the house and entered a large, empty room. This room had no specified purpose, and I noted that with a few small modifications, such as sealing an archway, laying carpet and hanging curtains, this room could be converted into a comfortable bedroom.
Act II
It was time to vote in the parliamentary elections. An election bus arrived at the front door of my home. This bus was where people came to cast their votes. As I entered the bus, I was given a ballot form. This form was no larger than a business card, and appeared very fragile, as though at any time it could fall into a number of pieces.
I did not want to vote in the elections, and decided to wait out my time on the bus until the authorities would let me return to my house. As I sat in the bus waiting, an old friend of my mother's entered the bus and sat beside me. We did not talk.
The bus left to visit its next destination. This came as a surprise to me as I believed the bus would remain at my house. I was confused as to how I could get off the bus and return to my home.
Act III
I found myself in a building that had great perceived significance to myself as a child. I wished to return home at the first possible moment, however my only method of transport was to walk. The distance was immense, however I began to walk anyway. An acquaintance from my past picked me up and drove me home.
Act IV
I went to visit my Aunt and Uncle in their home town, where I have always known them to live. I was driving up their street. It was longer than I remember it to be, and a storm had recently passed, littering the street with fallen trees. Some of the trunks had been cut with a chainsaw, clearing a meandering path down the street. Despite the path not being wide enough to allow a car to pass, I was able to navigate the street in my vehicle.
I entered my Aunt and Uncle's house. The house had been remodelled using a design surprisingly similar to my own new house. In the living room sat two of my female cousins, as well as a number of other people I was not able to focus on. I assumed my Aunt and Uncle were in the room.
Each of my cousins held a square plastic painter's palette in their elevated left hand. The palettes were angled with their top side towards me. I could see small circles drawn around the edges of the palettes, each containing the name of a colour. Each circle contained a small amount of paint of the colour specified within that circle. In the centre of the palettes, my cousins mixed paints.
Also in the room was a single easel holding a canvas. Upon the canvas was drawn a pattern of overlapping flower petals. Each petal contained the name of a colour. The younger of my cousins was applying paint to the canvas with her brush, precisely filling each of the petal shapes with the colour of paint specified within that shape. I noticed with some interest how different this style of painting was to my own.
I remained in the room for some time watching this spectacle. I could hear the other occupants of the room chatting in the background; however I could not understand what they were saying. As I watched my cousin paint, I began to see her painting style change. No longer did she regard the shapes or colours specified on the canvas. Her random strokes with varying colours began to fill the canvas with life and interest. However, these new strokes were translucent in colour only and did not cover the pre-drawn shapes and colour names on the canvas.
Timothy de Paris
2007
