Like bacteria

Talent.

The word of others.

My talent, if it exists, my talent stinks; it literally smells.

Is it that bad?

No, no, it’s fine talent, maybe even exceptional talent,

but it has a strong odor.

How can an abstract quality have a physical smell?

That is not what we are discussing–

Some days, it’s a fragrance, like the wood of an exotic tree.

And others?

Other days it is a tangerine smell, the smell of imminent death.

Yes, but–

It smells because it’s alive.

And as with all living things, there are organisms colonizing my talent and feeding off it.

Like the bacteria on my body, on yours.

They are what cause the smell.

I see.

Can you eradicate these organisms? Wash them off?

No, I would quickly sicken and die myself;

I don’t know how to live without them.

Are they pernicious?

Oh yes, very. Although I cannot live without them, they often sicken me.

They will eventually kill me.

How can you protect yourself from them?

I grow my words like sharp, pointy sticks; I grow them soft as tongues.

And I make the organisms sleep.

They forget they are hungry for a while.

I know of no other way to tolerate their presence.

It’s good.