overnight very whitely discreetly very quietly our toes our noses take hold on the loam acquire the air nobody sees us stops us betrays us the small grains make room soft fists insist on heaving the needles the leafy bedding even the paving our hammers our rams earless and eyeless perfectly voiceless widen the crannies shoulder through holes we diet on water on crumbs of shadow bland mannered asking little or nothing so many of us so many of us we are shelves we are tables we are meek we are edible nudgers and shovers in spite of ourselves our kind multiplies we shall by morning inherit the earth our foot s in the door 23