I am working on the front cover of a heavy tome, building it up in layers. The panel is thick, with a circle recessed in the upper half. Within that circle is a smaller circular mounting with a bright red ruby inset at the very center.

The book has the massive, timeless feel of an heirloom volume from the Chicago World’s Fair. The carving on the cover possesses a dimension of depth that somehow suggests the imaginary number i, the square root of negative 1.

I am resolute through several dream sequences—persisting in my task with, my eyes and hands led by the design.