vladimir vladivostok

This one was originally posted minutes ago on www.thejesuitsieve.blogspot.com I decided to also post it here because, for different reasons, I think it should likewise be hosted via my own vehicle. Vladimir Vladivostok was a character conjured by my dad, a recurring protagonist of countless bedtime stories. The older we got, the more we demanded that my dad make the stories scarier and scarier. That was a long time ago.

paint peeling
the smoke of fried food
it was in the air
once upon a time
surrounded by walls
whose paint was peeling
surrounded by walls
through which only imagination
could pass
the white wolf
licks its paws
warm
by the cold river
vlad stokes
coals
of a fire
no one else can see
but do you feel it
can’t you feel it
been alone
for years now
with thoughts
that no longer stray
from distillations
of memories
so much so
fact has finally blurred
absolutely
with fiction
somewhere
in a tall forest
a man has finally
found time
when there is no time
to do the things
to say the things
conceived
in the heart
of a boy
the boy
behind his fading eyes
hiding out
peeking out
screaming out
now shush
in a forest
stoking coals
of a fire
that still burns
in a forest
for it was always
yours
if you cared