Meeting in Sogdiana* — A Poem by J.G. Sandom

 

I remember the yellow blouse

you wore that day.

The world was still asleep,

and the cutthroat trout

sucked small dark flies

into their mouths.

 

When you told me of your plans,

I felt as if I'd never fished

with you before;

as if I were a soldier

from a foreign land

who'd come to find

an enemy he'd never seen.

 

* 36 BC - Roman legionnaires confront Chinese troops in Sogdiana.

 

New York City ~ 1984