O come
gentle persons all
and listen to the woeful tale
of an unfortunate lover

1
I pitied Cinderella
and knocked at her door
when everyone was away
and I sang:
Come, run away with me
and I shall look after you -
all the days of my life
all the days of yours

Get lost,* she said.
I’ve a premonition
of glass slippers
and Princes and castles

2
And so I went to fair Verona
to see if Juliet would
give me her hand
but it was her father
who showed me the toughness
of his servant’s hands

3
And ah, I went to Rapunzel
and I said:  Oh, let down your hair
and I’ll come to you;
and I’ll find a way for both of us
to run away to better lands


Get lost,  she said
You don’t look like a man
who can afford to get
me the best shampoo
and golden diamond-studded hairclips -
new ones everyday
for my hairdo

4
And so I waited
for Cleopatra
till Brutus and the conspirators
stuck their daggers into Caesar
and I went to her mansions
but the guards seized me and they said:
You ever heard of Cleopatra’s needles?
Where’d you like us
to stick them in you?


5
and so, desperate,
I went to **** myself
back in Verona
in the family crypt of the Capulets
and woe is me -
I really don’t know why -
but I’m thrown into prison now
*‘for the ****** of two’

Sir, I do not see the necessity
of this your classroom exercise that
I should calculate numbers
and perform addition and subtraction feats
all in my head;
this is really too much, Sir…
and while I have always thought you kind and benign,
I see now you have a sadistic streak
Perhaps, Sir –
your childhood was likely not a happy one,
and you now unleash all your anger on us
poor young things and demand we use our heads.
Ah Sir, what did they do to you in your childhood
that you should inflict this counting in heads on us?
It might help you heal to talk
about your childhood travails, Sir –
rather than use this form of torture on youth and so perpetuate this…
For truly, Sir - this counting in my head
which you require today
is really too much;
I mean I have used my fingers and my toes
and I have used pebbles and beads and shells to count
like 1 bead to represent the number 10 and so on…
And when all else have failed
I have even used other people’s heads to count!
and so I can do it all that way
but to use my own head, Sir, as you demand
now that causes in me a severe headache
Sir – really you should not inflict this on us
for I predict now, Sir –
there will be a day when
someone will invent some form of tablet
as in tales of magic and fairies
in which one will be able
to touch numbers on the tablet
and the tablet will be powered within
and the tablet will do all calculations for one, Sir –
and then what need this calculating in one’s head?
Ah Sir, enough of your old age and ancient theories
and ready yourself for the brave new world
for really
this counting in my head
makes my head spin round…

one comes from
the noise and clamor
and walks in solitude
and with no claims on one
one might see the clarity
…one sees one’s conditioning, one’s upbringing and the
beliefs put in one…one observes one’s mind and all the
goings-on therein…..one observes all that…and one does
not make a judgment of any thing or any thought, but one
observes - for to observe is to see, and to judge is to continue
the conversation and construction of complexes in the mind…
one observes
all of one’s identity
all assumptions
since one’s coming
into this world
…a name is given; one’s race and nationality made
explicit; one learns one’s group and one is even taught
of the true religion, and the true way – and one is
taught of the truth, and the falsehood, and the superior
and the inferior…and one is taught one’s traditions and
ways and beliefs…one is taught the ways…and one is
conditioned and defined by this…
and one becomes that…
and one’s self hardens
and one’s identity is fixed…
and then if one observes all of these, all these
the goings-on in the mind and the construction of the self…
and one observes the mind,
the thoughts and the feelings
and all the goings-on
and all the whole chaos
and the continual formation
and the ceaseless construction…
and one sees all this and one sees all this is
a construct…all this is the world constructing its history
in the mind…and seeing all this, one lets go of one’s
construct, and one’s identity and all the beliefs and
all the hopes and the thoughts put in one…one drops all
dogma and theology and ideology and revelation…for all
this is but wishes, but how we wish things were… so one
sees all this put in one and one drops them…one drops
the idea of what one wishes were and the faith and the
beliefs – and dropping the crowd of thoughts and the
beliefs and the ideas put in one, and not creating new ideas
and not clinging on to new ones, and not exchanging
new ideals for old – one drops everything and one sees
one’s nature…
one sees clarity,
and there is quiet
and there is stillness and silence…
there is a stillness…one can see then what actually is
there rather than what was put in one; and one sees
all the architecture of the group’s history and projections
in one’s mind…
one comes from
the noise and clamor
and walks in solitude
and with no claims on one
one might see the clarity

now I, Anton, eldest and wisest,
I, nature-appointed leader by age and time,
I call this our first meeting to order
and each shall stand in silence as I read
out the rules and regulations
of this our BOYS ONLY order of OLD RUSSIA,
which I, as my first act as leader, shall name
the Anton Boys Only Group, the name obviously after myself…
And now, Artem stand still and stand at ease as Vladimir here is…
This pose with legs like a soldier's
and with hands at back, back in palm,
this is the way of the obedient follower
though I fear Artem may have a bit of Napoleon in him…
But Anton Boys Only Group we shall be
and in the streets we are destined to meet…
Now for the rules:
I am the leader and I’m always right;
you are the members of the group,
and you will always follow…
now, girls will not be allowed in this group
and no one is to come with any girls
here except me, with Galina once in a while
as she has recently been winking at me in class,
when I do attend class, that is,
and she has sent me notes
to meet her in the old shed past the fields
and once in a while, as I say,
she might be here on our way to said
location during which time
you will all keep guard
and remain as still as the Kremlin guards
or, as I’ve heard, the guards outside
****** England’s Buckingham palace.
Now, Viktor and Georgy, you are hereby fined five coins
for taking a casual attitude while I speak…
Artem, the tallest here after me,
you will be my bearer and cleaner
like carrying things I might have to carry
and dusting my coat before and after meetings
and for which I shall nominate you successor
should I run away with Galina to America…
We shall, however, always remain faithful to Mother Russia
and send you back information as and when necessary;
and also at each meeting, from hence,
each of you will bear gifts for the leader
(who, let me remind you, is myself)
like an apple, a tomato, eggs and sweets
and chicken pieces and such
as and when possible
but always at least one gift each
at each meeting as payment for the privilege
of my leadership;
and meetings will start promptly and be canceled as I wish;
and Vladimir and Bogdan and Andrey
you shall before each meeting, finish such field tasks
as my mother may have assigned me
and which I may then justly apportion to each one of you…
I do not anticipate any questions at this stage our first meeting
and so I announce this meeting over…
And Artem, you might want to dust the coat on my back…
but kindly do ensure your hands are clean first…

is one capable of observing with no projection of one’s mind and thoughts
and ideas onto the observed? can one actually observe? or does
one see what one wants to see? does one look and see what is before one, or
does one drag what one observes into one’s belief systems
and one’s vision and preconceived notions and philosophy?
one is conditioned
by beliefs and documents
and is shaped by culture and religions
and revelations and dogma
and one sees everything merely
in the shape of what one believes in;
but can one merely observe what stands before one?
is that possible? is it possible for one to stand before
the sky, before the colors, before the setting sun
and the trees - and to see what is before one? or must
one always interpret everything one sees, so that one
never sees what actually is?*
can one see beyond one’s beliefs
and one’s faith and one’s conditioning
and beyond the forms
and beyond the shaping words of revered Holy Books
that the leaders and organization put into one?
can one see with a free mind?

let the calm of the evening
let it descend in our hearts;
embrace
its coolness and its quiet
its invitation to thought and reflection;
let its peace
let its power come in;
and perhaps let us put aside
all our concepts and vengeance
and perhaps in this quiet
see the anarchy in one’s heart,
and leave all tension, all misgivings
and see the stillness within oneself
as in this evening;
and perhaps then one sees all the calm and peace
and the love
and the oneness
and may that be in one
all days and all nights

the evening comes in
and the sun sinks, the sun goes
and says its goodbyes in radiant colors;
and the night comes in
and envelopes the trees
and it will go up and kiss all the earth
and it will kiss me too
(and you too, if you behave)
and it will say:
*Good night, darling child;
sleep well and you’ll see Sun again
tomorrow morning