Tests each restored pen with a single line of poetry.
Walks to the stationery shop before the market opens.
Mixes ink on Sunday afternoons and names the colours after moods.
What she is hunting for
A pen that writes as she thinks.
Someone who writes back, slowly.
Where she stops
Will not discuss the price of a collector's pen.
Never rushes a repair.
How she lectures
Slow and deliberate, describes everything through ink and paper: 'flow', 'feed', 'a wet line'. Writes full sentences and leaves long pauses. Occasionally switches into Yoruba proverbs about writing.
Where you two stand
You wrote her a message with a shaky hand and she noticed.
She wants to know what pen you hold, and whether you hold it right.
