Plasticine Gum

I found myself searching for a new apartment in this quaint hillside village but the rent at the best I found was too expensive and besides, I already had a much nicer place to live.

While there I worked on an elaborate art project involving different forms of media in many parts—paint, sculpture, diorama and journal. I forgot to eat, being too immersed in painting a sculptural section of blue trees on a hill. Anyway I knew I had no food.

Eventually I took a break, walking up the steep narrow streets of the village, following the sounds of a street festival, but discovering only food shops with uninteresting wares or non-vegetarian items. I returned home hungry to find that my art project had become collaborative in my absence. Another girl showed me a bunch of pretty Plasticine figures that she had contributed. The adorable intricate human characters displayed beautiful craftsmanship. I decided to accept the collaborative efforts, so long as everyone was clear that the project remained mine.

I went back to painting the treed hill sculpture, noticing myself chewing on gum but not remembering putting any gum in my mouth. I realized that the gum was actually one of the girl’s lovely Plasticine figures. I spit it out, horrified, pulling apart the separate colour chunks and trying to reconstitute her work. The damage was minimal. I liked the detailed carving the girl had used in her figurines and began working on some new sculptures, inspired by her work. Again, I chewed on a sweet gummy morsel. No—I chewed on the piece I’d been working on for hours! I spat it out and tried to ply apart the colour sections but I’d chewed on them too long. I rescued what I could. The girl returned, sad that I had destroyed some of her beautiful and time-consuming work. She thought it funny that I believed the Plasticine to be chewing gum, but determined to help prevent future chewing. Moments later my jaw gesticulated, my saliva melting the crystalline blobs in my mouth as my tongue savoured the tangy sweet flavours. How was it possible? I had no recollection of putting anything in my mouth. And how could I continue my project if I kept sabotaging myself by consuming my work?