THE WRITER

the day before Ivan Kupalo [1]

in two thousand and six

smack in the middle of the day

in Bakhmach

I saw Volodymyr Kashka

in the yard behind his Khrushchev-era apartment building

we showed up out of the blue

intruded on his space slid

into his alcohol-drenched gaze

in a shiny limousine

not a single wrinkle on Kashka’s face

revealed his sense of surprise

he stood singularly

across from us the newly arrived

suddenly

he began to speak

he laid out the ragged map

of his life before us

every word was

like a child beaten by his father

every word was

like a sob

Notes

[1] Kupalo is an ancient pagan celebration adapted by Christianity as the feast day of St. John the Baptist—it takes place annually in early July. Having been Sovietized for propaganda purposes in the past, it is experiencing a revival in post-Soviet Ukraine. Its elaborate ritual features the lighting of ceremonial fires. The Kupalo festival traditionally provides young men and women an opportunity for courtship.

Translated by Mark Andryczyk