Demonic Experiments: Gifts Left Behind in Unopened Packages

I keep intriguing gifts in packages too big to leave until the next day. There are fingerprints of the gift givers on each of them, some of them ruined the packages with their oily hands, some with the traces of their dirty skin. I've always suffered from being so picky, but I never wanted to change that. Somehow I think it's my meticulousness that has protected me so far, it took me a long time to hold on to such a stupid idea. I move the packages away from the windows, I don't want them to work or attract the attention of anyone passing by. I care about the gifts as much as the givers, and although I can guess what's inside the packages, I won't open them for too long so they don't lose their surprise.

I know that when the time comes for them to open up, they will call to me, somehow wake me up from this deep meaninglessness. Going to sleep wondering what the terrifying or joyful things are hidden inside is an important part of this self-deceived life I live. I don't even remember who the people who gave them to me, who put them in front of my house or door, are, and I'm deceiving you and myself. Thank you for being a part of this "sublime" game. The only clean place in my house full of dusty shelves must be the floor where the gifts are kept. Maybe that's why I don't move them somewhere else, I'm satisfied with the thought that there's still a clean surface left underneath.

January, 2024 paper collage // by Demon Ego