Puphood (på dansk)
Masken hang på væggen. Han havde set billeder: der var puppies, og der var handlers, og mere endnu. Det var første gang han fik lov til at prøve sådan en maske, det var den samme type som de andre havde på, selv om de alle var forskelligt udformet.
Han havde set mange billeder, men ikke nogen indefra. Masken sluttede tæt.
Menneskerne rundt omkring blev til omgivelser. "Du skal have nogle knæbeskyttere, ellers så kommer du til at ødelægge dine knæ rigtig hurtigt". Masken dæmpede stemmen.
Hvad nu? De legede hundebowling. Det var det, de kaldte det. Han snusede til en ven. Han kunne gøre hvad han ville nu. Han havde lyst til at ligge sig ned og tage en lur.
Da han tog masken af igen, snakkede han med de andre. Menneskene så forskellige ud, inde under maskerne.
De snakkede om neopren, om at bo i Svendborg, og i Malmø. Han spiste sammen med dem. Nogen fortalte om en teaterteknik, hvor man gav sine skuespillere masker på, som dækkede ansigtsmimikken. Det hjalp skuespilleren til at indtage sin rolle, og spille med hele kroppen, fremfor med hovedet.
Det var, som om, at han havde trådt ud af hans identitet, mens han havde den på. Det er sjovt, tænkte han: det var egentlig ikke ham, der havde ændret sig, det var reglerne, der havde ændret sig.
Hans krop havde jo ikke ændret sig, eller,
på en måde havde den ændret sig lidt.
Han kom til at tænke på The Mask, filmen med Jim Carrey, grønt ansigt, gul hat, og store hvide tænder.
En af dem sagde: "Mit råd er: lad være med at have et mål, når du går ind"
Han skulle prøve igen. De var samlet inde i stuen. Masken føltes varm. Det var behageligt. Den dækkede for hans menneskeører, så ord blev slørede. Derfor talte de et tydeligere sprog. Det var ligesom at starte forfra. De andre kendte visse signaler. Han huskede ret hurtigt sit sprog. Det var anderledes denne gang. Han kom til at tænke på dengang han kvittede smøgerne første gang. Den gang han havde taget MDMA med nogle venner, og de var ude i naturen. Han var inde i naturen. Han havde rullet om på ryggen. Håndfladerne blev så store at de dækkede hele hans maveskind. Den sluttede tæt. Det var sjovt. Han bed, for sjov. Så stoppede han med at tænke.
Der var betydelig forskel på at klappe nogen, og at være hunden som blev klappet. Han slikkede. Der var ikke noget at forvente nu. Han kunne ikke forudse fremtiden, og havde intet behov for den. Tennissokker.
Indimellem snakkede de. Så tænkte han.
Han tænkte på de store, skinnende tænder. Ved en hund godt, at den er en hund?
Det virkede lidt ligegyldigt, for en hund. Eller tror den måske, at den er noget andet?
Han så sig selv løbe henover græsplænen. Hvordan perspektivet havde rykket sig tættere ind mod Jorden.
Var der ting, som han ikke havde lyst til at vide som menneske? Måske var det bare ting, som kun dyret havde adgang til.
Han kiggede på billeder. En af de andre var blevet bundet op ude foran Netto.
Han havde sit eget udstyr nu. Han gav pote og sad pænt, når han ville. Dyret havde sine egne karaktertræk nu. Det var sjovt at lege. Men ikke alle leger menneskelege. Hvad hvis dyret ville mere?
Han hev masken af. Det var blevet mørkt, og den kølige luft strømmede uhindret til hans næsebor. Selv om det var menneskenæsen, føltes den skarp.
Det var så mørkt at asfalten skinnede hvidt under månen.
Han var ikke inde i gården længere. Hvor var han? Der var ingen mennesker tilstede. Han så en af de andre ved træerne.
De bjæffede af ham. Han tog masken på og spurgte den anden: hvorfor løber vi ikke væk? Han kunne mærke græsset nu. Alt føltes levende her.
Jeg sagde: I er ikke vilde dyr. Nogen dyr kan blive venner med mennesker. Men i er opvokset i fangeskab, så i bliver aldrig rigtig vilde. Det er derfor i har menneskene.
De hoppede rundt og snappede efter hinanden. Benene føltes så lette. De luntede tilbage til bygningerne og stemmerne og lysene. Madskålen. Brødrene. Han forstod at menneskerne også spiller en rolle. Han vil måske ikke huske det. Han vil måske huske hvordan de hylede. Nu vågner han op igen.
Puphood (in english)
The mask hung on the wall. He had seen pictures: there were puppies, and there were handlers, and more yet. It was the first time he got to try such a mask, it was the same type as the others had on, though they all were differently formed
He had seen many pictures, but none from inside. The mask sealed.
The humans around became surroundings. “You gotta have some kneepads, or you’re gonna hurt your knees real fast”. The mask muffled the voice.
What now? They played dog bowling. That’s what they called it. He sniffed a friend. He could do what he wanted now. He wanted to lay down and take a nap.
When he took the hood back off, he chatted with the others. The humans looked different.
They talked about neoprene, about living in Svendborg, and in Malmö. He ate together with them. Someone shared about a theater technique, where the actors were put in masks, which removed the facial expressions.
It was like he had stepped out of his identity, while he had it on. It’s funny, he thought; it wasn’t really him who had changed, it was the rules which had changed.
His body of course hadn’t changed, or,
in a way it had changed a little.
He was reminded of The Mask, the movie with Jim Carrey, green face, yellow hat, and big white teeth.
One of them said: ”My advice is: don’t have a goal going in”.
They were gathered in the living room. The hood felt warm, it was comfortable. It covered his human ears, so words became fuzzy. Therefore they spoke a clearer language. It was like beginning again. The others knew certain signals. He remembered his language pretty quickly, but it was different this time. He was reminded of that time he quit smoking, the first time. The time he had taken MDMA with some friends, and they were out in nature. He was inside nature. He had rolled onto his back. The palms became so large that they covered all his bellyskin. It sealed. It was fun. He nibbled, for fun. Then he stopped thinking.
There was a significant difference between petting someone, and being the dog that was pet. There was nothing to expect now. He couldn’t foresee the future, and had no need for it. Tube socks.
In between, they talked. Then he thought.
He thought of the big, shiny teeth. Does a dog know, that it’s a dog?
It seemed a bit unimportant, for a dog. Or maybe it believes it’s something else?
He saw himself running across the lawn. How the perspective had moved closer in towards Earth.
Were there things he didn’t want to know as a human? Maybe there were just things that only the animal had access to.
He looked at pictures. One of the others had been tied outside a supermarket.
He had his own gear now. He shook paw and sat pretty, when he wanted. The animal had its own characteristics now. It was fun to play. But not everyone plays human games. What if the animal wanted more?
He pulled the hood off. It had gotten dark, and the cool air streamed unhindered to his nostrils. Even though it was the human nose, it felt sharp.
It was so dark that the asphalt glowed white under the moon.
He was not in the yard anymore. There were no humans present. He saw one of the others by the trees.
They yapped at him. He put on the hood and asked the other: why don’t we run away? He could feel the grass now. Everything felt alive here.
I said: you are not wild animals. Some animals can befriend humans. But you were raised in captivity, so you will never be properly wild. That’s why you have the humans.
They jumped around snapping jaws at one another. Legs felt so light. They lumbered back to the buildings and the voices and the lights. The food bowl. The brothers. He understood that the humans also play a role. He may not remember it. He might remember how they howled. Now he wakes again.