Wednesday, June 3
READING INSTRUCTIONS
A Russian citizen
took to the streets
with a sign that read war.
The Russian police
shoved him into a prison van.
Other Russians
watched carefully,
filming on their phones.
A Russian woman
took to the streets
with a sign that read peace.
The Russian police
shoved her into a prison van.
More Russians
began lining up
to enter the van
with signs
and without.
Other Russians
watched carefully,
filming on their phones.
ii.
A Russian soldier
began reading,
the bearded Russian’s novel.
Didn’t make it past the cover.
Didn’t need to.
At school, they taught him
To read between the lines.
(Lesyk Panasiuk,
translated from Ukrainian by Katie Farris and Ilya Kaminsky)