The Marionettes Of Distant Masters

The Marionettes Of Distant Masters
By Russell Edson

A pianist dreams that he's hired by a wrecking company to 
ruin a piano with his fingers . . . 
On the day of the piano wrecking concert, as he's 
dressing, he notices a butterfly annoying a flower in his window 
box. He wonders if the police should be called. Then he thinks 
maybe the butterfly is just a marionette being manipulated by 
its master from the window above. 
Suddenly everything is beautiful. He begins to cry. 

Then another butterfly begins to annoy the first butterfly. 
He again wonders if he shouldn't call the police. 
But, perhaps they are marionette-butterflies? He thinks 
they are, belonging to rival masters seeing whose butterfly can 
annoy the other's the most. 

And this is happening in his window box. The Cosmic 
Plan: Distant Masters manipulating minor Masters who, in turn, 
are manipulating tiny butterfly-Masters who, in turn, are 
manipulating him . . . A universe webbed with strings! 
Suddenly it is all so beautiful; the light is strange . . . 
Something about the light! He begins to cry . . .