Waiter

It’s Sunday. The place
buzzes with anxious voices.
Tourists and locals

the same: perplexed.
Justice mocked. Cupidity
causing waste and death.

I read Mandelstam.
The voices fade, the one voice
I’m listening to

steadies me. I shout
to the waiter, filled with hope,
life beyond this life.

Author: Tom D'Evelyn

Tom D'Evelyn is a private editor and writing tutor in Portland OR and, thanks to the web, across the US and in the UK. He can be reached at tom.develyn@comcast.net. D'Evelyn has a PhD in Comparative Literature from UC Berkeley. Before retiring he held positions at The Christian Science Monitor, Harvard University Press, Boston University and Brown University. He ran a literary agency for ten years, publishing books by Leonard Nathan and Arthur Quinn, among others. Before moving to Portland OR he was managing editor at Single Island Press, Portsmouth NH. He blogs at http://tdevelyn.com and other sites. View all posts by Tom D'Evelyn

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