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keitaro: well, today
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as usual we have
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a special guest.
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a wonderful guest
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has agreed to come here today.
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he's an artist.
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the pictures you saw
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on the screen
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before are his.
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please a big applause
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to a great poet
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and a great photographer
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ladies and gentlemen, mr genqui numata.
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numata: hi, y'all.
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my name is genqui numata.
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tonight i will
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read
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a poem.
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i dedicate this poem
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to pizzicato five.
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to a person descending a staircase.
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hey you, who are descending this staircase
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with sweat on your brow
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afraid of going down you let your gaze
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glide down the stairs like a shadow.
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yes, you.
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this underpass in springtime smells of dust
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and a lukewarm breeze blows by.
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keep up your rhythm
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keep up your rhythm
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and climb down those stairs
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as if your life depended on that.
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pass by that leaning building
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kick the dogs away
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kick the cats too
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and go fast to the ticket counter.
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legs
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are sometimes
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independent beings.
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keep up your rhythm
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keep up your rhythm
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and when you can't take it anymore
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when your body
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and your legs have reached their limit
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at that time
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a soft fall will ensue.
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you feel as if
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your legs fell off your body
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or maybe there's a pause
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like a heart attack
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but you don't know what it is.
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you don't
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know.
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you gradually
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gather up speed
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and as you speed up your legs
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and your trembling lips start to resonate.
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the fall comes at the last moment
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and makes it easier.
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and you ask yourself
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who are we?
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who am i
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after al?
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your joints squeak
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am i nothing but
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a crawling work of art?
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am i nothing but
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a voice sounding away
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accross this sky
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so blue it looks like it's been dyed?
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am i nothing but
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the speed of
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this fall through thin air?
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shadow that melts away
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voice that dies away
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voice from the subway
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keep up your rhythm
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keep up your rhythm
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with grace
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with flair
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hey you, legs,
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hey you, my distant legs
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let's go on a stroll
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as the silent time goes by
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the city silently
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opens itself.
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goodbye.
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Poetry Reading by Genqui Numata - Eng
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Pizzicato Five |