blåhaj shopping for valentine’s day

by Jona L. Pedersen

after IKEA closes and all the shoppers leave, a blåhaj comes to life. in this warehouse kingdom, anything is mulig after dark: the haj swims through the mörker of deserted aisles, past vacant beds and couches. it sniffs out fragmented light of a nymåne, scattered across the tidvatten of Svartsjön rippling throughout the store. the haj muses, strangerswillfallinlove intheseloveseats.familieswill raisetheirchildreninthese rooms.theywillsleep inthesebeds,thenwake again.

the blåhaj swims past the many lives and futures which lay shelved in each aisle. but, come morning, the famnig of IKEA magic releases the marionetted haj. the store doors open once more—as they will until the end of days. in an oumbärlig moment, the haj comes to rest on a blue couch. but soon, a pair of hands will reach for its soft plushie skin healing all hampdån scars.

there will be a home in these hands.

Author’s vocabulary of IKEA furniture

blåhaj = blue shark mulig = possible mörker = darkness nymåne = new moon tidvatten = tidal waters

Svartsjön = the Black Sea famnig = embrace oumbärlig = inevitable hampdån = nettle