I felt good
One footstep after another
Up the stairs to the landing
I felt light
It was light
Though I had climbed these stairs earlier
In the dark of night
Then I was caught, woken from sleep, in pain
But now I could go anywhere
And I found a book
Which might once have fallen in the bath
The silence is broken by the cry of a child
That the lack of light
Is used to evoke the mystery
Of the night of the daring raid
The glass is left
As cut out by the robbers
A rectangular opening
Just large enough
To lift the tiara through
Whispered voices add to the atmosphere
Of loss, and magisterial bindings
And thieves or vagabonds
The knurled foot of the sofa is leaning
It does rather need straightening up
The teacup is also at an angle
Yet sits reasonably content on the radiator
Today the socks are red and yellow, green and purple
How could they not lift your spirits
The music is by Gorecki
From his Symphony of Sorrowful Songs
I hope you might pause to listen
I will
During which time nostalgia may be abroad
Concert halls, cathedrals, monastic abbeys
With streetlights, spotlights, and cool water flowing
Also smiling eyes, smiling through vales of tears
You might know of this in your own life
Where one step seemingly follows another
Yet all the while your direction is being changed
As you climb the steps to the upper deck
Or stand outside in the autumn mist
Waiting for an indicator to flash or a sign to be given
But you were the one, were you not
Who flew to Helsinki, who flew to Stockholm
In your very best blue business suit
You strode through snowdrifts to eat Chernobyl reindeer
You stepped beside the marketeers from the archipelago
All the while letting the direction take you at its will
