THE SHADOW

As a child,
in the dim rusty evenings,
every shadow in the alleys
was a stray dog,
the werewolf,
the boogeyman.

I wished,
then,
not
a
sword
or a stout armour,
but
a shadow
bigger
and stronger than those,
with broad calm
shoulders,
a slow brief
pace,
a stricter wiser
voice.

Such a shadow,
I wished
to have
by my side,
or a little behind.

Today,
thirty years old,
that shadow
I still
turn back
to find,
and if I saw it,
if I heard it
even
only
for
a
moment,
it would be enough,
and I wouldn’t fear anymore.

(translated by Giuseppe Villella)

from “To The South of Things” – Thunder Bay, 2013