Ordinal Linguistic Personification is a form of Synesthesia

        Now

    0 is a fat cypher who’s married to

1, an unpretentious

       skinny number,

       like Jack Sprat and his wife.

        2 is just an ass, alone like

        3, who’s rather odd, an unfinished heart

but leads the other numbers, dutifully.

4 is stocky and graceless

who holds hands

       with 5, the most clever number.

        And

                6 is a petty gossip, jealous of

                5 and 4, while

                7, a tall, thin dancer,

               pirouettes to impress 8,

               who is in love with himself

               but still has eyes for

                9, the most selfish diva of them all.

              Because

                    6, 7, 8, and 9 are bigger somehow

                    than 1 and 2 and 3 and 4 --

                    or at least they think they are.

                    Which is why they also dislike

                    5 so much, the pivot by which

                    10 swings.

                    But

                            10 is just 1 and 0

                            holding hands to spite the

                            8 who has no hands to hold

                            because he hugs himself like

                            6 and 9, who come together

                            to laugh at 7 who (they say) isn’t as pretty

                            as the other numbers who have curves.

                            Except

they all dance together in one singular recital:

When 3 begins the piece on pointe,

1 courteously bows to 4

then 1 bows again to 5,

who are holding hands together.

9 looks on in disgust as

2, like an ass, interrupts her on stage kiss with 6,

5 moonwalks past, which makes

3 smile, which makes 5 laugh,

and 6 jealousy grabs 9 again.  

Distracted, 3 trips over 9’s outstretched leg.

9 recovers and steals the spotlight for a solo as

3 falls into 7, who catches him gracefully

and 5 laughs at them all,

the pivot by which 10 swings

to spite the 8.

6, alone again, is still mad at 2,

and tries to strangle him while

8 intends to stab 0.

3 steps in to keep the peace with 4, but

8, still sore, stabs 2 instead,

while 5 looks on

And

this irrational dance called pi continues

on and on and

on into infinity...

3.141592653569399375108628034825…