Perception

"Legend Of Pianist 1900"

You take a piano
Keys begin
The keys end
You know there are 88 of them
Nobody can tell you any different
They are not infinite
You are infinite

And on those keys, the music
that you can make is infinite
I like that
That I can live by
You get me up on that gangway
and you roll out in front of me
a keyboard of millions
and billions of keys that never end
and that's the truth
Max, that they never end
That keyboard is infinite
And if that keyboard is infinite
then there is no music you can play
You're sitting on the wrong bench
That's God's piano
Christ, did you see the streets?
Just the streets.
There were thousands of them
How do you do it down there?
How do you choose just one?
One woman
One house
One piece of land to call your own
one landscape to look at
one way to die?
All that world
just weighing down on you
You don't even know
where it comes to an end
I mean, aren't you ever
just scared of
breaking apart
at the thought of it?
At the enormity of living it?
I was born on this ship
And the world passed my by
But two thousand people at a time
And there were wishes here
But never more than
fit between prow and stern
You played out your happiness, but
on a piano that was not infinite
I learned to live that way
Land?
Land is a ship too big for me
It's a woman too beautiful
It's a voyage too long
perfume too strong
It's music I don't know how to make
I could never get off this ship
At best
I can step off my life
After all
I don't exist for anyone
You're the exception, Max
You're the only one
who knows I'm here
You're a minority
And you'd better get used to it
Forgive me, my friend
but I'm not getting off
Hey, Max
Picture the scene
at the Golden Gates
Some guy searching a list trying to
find my name, not finding it

-What did you say
your name was again?

-Nineteen Hundred

-Niemann, Nightingale, Ninestock...
Nittledeen?

-Well, you see, sir
I was born on a ship

-Beg your pardon?

-Born, raised, and died on a ship
Maybe I'm not registered there

-Shipwreck?

-Six and a half tons of dynamite
Boom

-Feeling better now?

-Yeah, I'm fine except I lost an arm

-An arm?

-Yes, in the explosion

-Well, you should be able to
find one over there
Which one did you say
you were missing?

-Left, sir

-I'm dreadfully sorry
we only seem to have two rights

-Two right arms?

-Afraid so

-Would you mind awfully if...

-If I want?

-Well, if you take a right arm
instead of a left?

-Well, all things considered better
a right arm than nothing, I suppose

-Couldn't agree more...

No laughing matter, Max
What a [bad word] up
Spend eternity with two right arms?
I mean, how would you
make the sign of the cross?
Hey, Max
Imagine the music
I could play with two right arms
Hope I can find a piano up there...