He knows the early morning squares of Volos,
their shadows and tall buildings. How the arches
can go on forever. The church bells' silence
as curve by curve the statues turn toward light
to hear the oracle, who always says,
"A terror and a joy, such emptiness
can heal. It works inside of us to bring
to each of us the different states of mind
we need: the hiss, the grunt, the purr." And so
he finds another life, a place beyond
bewilderment, where moles with tiny teeth
rip through the earth, snails leave a glinting trail....
He doesn't know the face his waking forms
or why he has to hear those tinny bells.
