Bergman smiles at her from down on the granite.
Bergman declares that she’s never been lovelier, but
Bergman would lie worse than a horse runs if his prick were at risk.
Flight is a sign of weakness, she whispers.
Silence descends.
Silence is no longer a balm for the soul.
Silence is a social defect.
Minna feels the need to converse a bit.
Minna asks whether the couple has a cottage.
The woman says the cottage belongs to her husband.
The husband in question isn’t along on holiday.
The man with the large lips on the other hand is along for the whole trip.
The man asks Minna where she’s from.
Minna doesn’t know what to say.
Minna has more of an impulse to cry.
Aarhus—, says Minna.
Minna is suddenly unsure.
Minna felt at home in the song a few minutes ago.
The song disappeared, down toward the bottom.
The song stands still among the herring.
Everything else belongs to another reality.
Everything else, Minna thinks to herself, is mere geography.
Minna’s crawled into bed at her lodgings.
The landlady’s not home.
The dog’s inconsolable.
Minna’s stuffed a quilt around the bottom of the door.
Minna’s glad she has earplugs.
Minna’s glad she’s by herself again.
The man and woman wanted to accompany her to Svaneke.
Minna was dragged in as an unwilling witness.
Minna didn’t escape the couple till they were at the harbor kiosk.
Disappointment inhabits her mind like rainy weather.
Minna really wants an asshole filter.
Minna wants to start setting boundaries.
Minna can’t say either yes or no, and
Minna’s legs feel heavy.
The duvet feels strange.
The lodgings smell of cottage.
Minna thinks of spooks.
Minna’s only afraid of spooks once in a while.
Minna doesn’t believe in spooks, but
Things you don’t believe in often exist anyway.
The Grauballe Man haunted Minna one spring when she was a child.
The Grauballe Man lay dead in the Moesgård Museum, but
The Grauballe Man walks around at night.
The Grauballe Man wriggles out of his display.
The Grauballe Man stands out on the cobblestones.
The Grauballe Man walks into Marselisborg Forest.
The Grauballe Man loves nature — and Minna.
The bog man visits Minna at night.
Minna lies in her small bed with the duvet pulled up to her nose.
Minna lies and stares at the door of her room.
The living room resounds with the sound of coffee cups.
Elisabeth’s room resounds with the sound of high school boys.
Minna lies with her eyes on stalks, and then!
The door opens, and who should enter?
Minna’s friend from Marselisborg Forest.
The Grauballe Man smells of harness.
The Grauballe Man’s body is a story of its own.
The head crushed.
The throat cut.
The feet flat and lumpy, but what’s worse:
The bog man leans over Minna.
The bog man’s picked anemones for Minna.
The bog man boasts of his earthly remains.
The bog man still has flesh on his bones.
Minna will end up a skeleton!
Dad too!
Mom!
Elisabeth?
Minna doesn’t believe in spooks.
Minna believes in the Grauballe Man.
Minna lies in her Bornholm sanctuary.
Minna considers the spiritual probabilities.
Bergman haunts her too.
Elisabeth employs demons.
The Fenris wolf howls.
The spooks are coming if they exist.
Elisabeth’s coming if she discovers where Minna is.
Elisabeth wants to have the little ones under her thumb.
Minna just wants to love the little ones.
Minna’s little ones would never lack for sweets.
Minna’s little ones would grow roly-poly.
Minna really can’t say no.
It doesn’t matter now anyhow.
Minna won’t become anyone’s mother, and
Kids are the worst spooks in the world.
Kids can’t understand that they don’t exist.
Kids stick their cold hands under the duvet.
Kids would like to slap the sleeper’s face.
Minna collects herself.
Minna forces herself to think of dull things.
Minna makes plans for the morrow.
Minna wants to go farther out.
Minna wants to find a rock so desolate.
Minna wants to go out to the rock and sing.
Minna wants to make sure she’s alone.
Minna wants to stand there and get everything to swing.
The song will vault higher and higher.
The sky will stretch itself open,
The waves cast themselves against the cliff,
The ships beat into the wind.
Minna presses herself down into her rented linen.
Minna pushes herself out of reality.
The children exit Minna’s consciousness.
The children go with the Grauballe Man.
Marselisborg Forest closes up behind them.
The museum awaits.
The roe deer.
Minna’s put on her bathing suit under her sundress.
Minna wants to go out and sing and get tan.
Minna wants to rock-bathe.
Minna has to get provisions first.
Minna’s gone for a walk in town.
Svaneke’s lovely.
Svaneke’s light yellow.
Svaneke’s a set piece, thinks Minna.
The sky a stage border.
The smokehouse a sort of canteen.
The knickknack shops = the costume department.
Minna plays with the motif, and there’s something to it.
Minna does like Svaneke, but
Svaneke reminds her a bit of Linda.
The houses have tricked themselves out for the season.
The houses bulge with whitewashed plinths.
Minna raises her eyes to the horizon.
The ocean’s not going anywhere.
The ocean’s seen much worse.
The cliffs are above thoughts of time.
The Baltic! Årsdale!
Minna wants to hike toward Årsdale a bit later.
Minna wants to hike so far south that she can hike in peace.
Minna’s looked at the map.
The rocks extend a long way out down there.
The rocks permit clambering.
Minna can walk far out onto the rocks.
Minna’s on her way down and out, but
Svaneke Dairy is famed for its beer ice cream.
Svaneke Dairy lies en route.
Minna wants to have an ice cream to hike on.
The weather’s good for ice cream, and lots of people have thought the same thing:
The tourists have formed a line.
The line reaches far out into the gravel.
The line hardly budges.
The small children crawl around on a plastic cow in the courtyard.
The mothers stand in line.
The fathers look after the kids.
The retirees rummage in their purses.
The retirees cannot find their spectacles.
The waitresses are dressed in Morten Korch costumes.
The waitresses resemble actresses from the fifties.
The waitresses look like Tove Maës and Ghita Nørby.
The waitresses hobble becomingly in their feudal shoes.
The waitresses look homespun by the latte machines.
Minna’s crept forward a little ways in the line now.
Minna can see that there are celebrities in the line.
The celebrities take a long time to serve.
The retirees are on a first-name basis with the celebrities.