We sit in a room armored by light and surrounded

    by surfaces bright as mirrors. Everything shines and

    gives comfort， nothing is out of place and our hosts，

    too， are immaculate， each hair placed with the skill of

    a jeweler. Our words flutter and fail， too dusty， while

    theirs flow out in perfect paragraphs. We wonder why

    they invited us， disheveled and in tatters as we are， to

    enter their lives. Should we confess our unworthi-

    ness？ And oh we want to scour¹ our brains for some

    small accomplishment² but find nothing worthy³， noth-

    ing to equal the gleaming parquet⁴ of their smiles.

    They are so well-bred we can't believe our good luck，

    all our gnarled deceits brought here to be honored！

    And then， suddenly， we know： They're specialists to

    whom we've come with our shabby guilts and petty

    crimes to be killed with exquisite⁵ kindness.