asdfasdf
mstislav rostropovich was to play dvorak in london
in 1968, in the summer, in the english heat,
but europe was at a cusp, tumultuous, about to break again --
mstislav rostropovich was to play dvorak in london
and he did, but he played it crying,
his cello keening for prague.
this was years before i was born but i have read kundera,
i have traced my fingertips over tomas and tereza.
i am listening to mstislav rostropovich, to dvorak's concerto in b minor,
and kundera is open on my lap, moth-eaten;
i am turning pages as i listen to the cello:
the dreams of tomas, and the bowler hat,
and karenin whimpers in a corner of the yard.