ICE SKATERS

this morning on my way to work
on the Big Stone Bridge I saw the river
frozen at places

I imagined ducks ice skating on the Moskva

half-way across the bridge a man was shouting
at the waters, at the ice
holding his head with both hands

he looked angry
aggressive, perhaps dangerous
to me?

another man passed by, old one, shuffling snow
he smiled at me
his face was red from the cold

I was walking backward checking on the shouting man
thinking he could have jumped
into the waters, the ice

mix with the ice skating ducks

flags on the bridge
lengths of brightly colored material
kicking in the wind

well, i reached the metro station
removed my woolen gloves
the escalator took me down, deep, very deep

I lost a glove
somebody yelled STOP
I didn't pay attention, but a young guy ran to me

then I was in the train
fast moving one, very noisy, Moscow metro
a book with me, sometimes I read a few sentences

enough to give me something to think about
this morning, Marquis de Sade
words of power, but dirty

oh, the darkness
oh, ice skating ducks
oh, shouting man, lost glove, moving train

in Russia if you are unemployed you get $20 a month
that's about
twenty beers at the grocery store

could one live on that
like the writers on the Beat
used to live with one ice cream cone a day?

perhaps I read too much
inflation going up, talks of deflation, price of oil is up
nobody happy

guys at the US government borrow money
from other guys at the Federal Reserve
at a cost, and who is paying?

tax payers must return the borrowed money
+ the interest
money that doesn't exist, it's just a trick

money should be printed free of charge
like oxygen is free
money must be free

tonight in the metro I saw a beautiful woman
next to her sat a handsome man smiling
the two of them were smiling at me

I was smiling back
they came off the train waving at me
what a world !

the sky was blue when I woke up
was it this morning
or the next?

the church down from my balcony has pink walls
cupolas five of them covered with gold
there you go, something to think of

cupolas like onions with a cross put on top
peel off the onion skins and you're left with nothing
the cross above it means Love stands above it

love standing on the Void
love saving us from the absurdity of your fate
love and life against nothing and darkness

::: ::: :::

Picture : A tired door

Note: "ICE SKATERS" was a boring long text which I turned into this perhaps more readable poem on August 26, 2012.