Nobody came to meet me with a lantern—Anna Akhmatova
I had my flickering moral flashlight on
for days, seeking an appointment and
I found one at last—
a time slot in a nearby town
I needed a warrior with me—
what good is one warrior alone?
Plus, I had the post-shot wait so
I grabbed a volume of Akhmatova
On to my right hand I fumbled the
glove to my left hand
After the moats and dragons at
the pharmacy window,
the castle door opened and
the white-coated pharmacist
called my name
And she was like a white flag
…in the light of a beacon
After the shot, I waited with Anna—
I found a poem she wrote
the month I got my first name
And then I walked to my car with
that hamsterwheel feeling of
triumph and disbelief
so many stones are
thrown at me,
they no longer scare
And I sang all the way home
Akhmatova’s quotes are in italics.
