Soft Echo

digital animation made from color woodcuts

Quarantine, 2020

The water fountain outside of my classroom is broken. It gurgles endlessly, an elegant water feature, until a passing student jostles the lever just right to cut off the water. Now, school is closed, and the students stay home until further notice. It’s been five weeks; there’s no plan yet to return. Has the fountain been left on? I imagine a soft echo in the vacant hallway as water splatters gently on the metal basin.