I knew them first as the chrome and ochre yellows that seemed to scream from the brush of the man who cut off his own ear. But here, so affectionate, the lionheads turned upwards to follow the movement of their beloved, until their necks are limp and wrung, their spent gold drooping heavy on their shoulders . O Lord, I cannot hear You For the ticking of the clock, For the humming of the refridgerator, For the sighing of the air conditioner. Speak, shatter these dim voices, These clattering machines With their incessant insistent grey din, Explode into the dimness of the world.