Some nervous tension between
The couple.
Mr T always tensed up before
He travels anywhere
This time to Bratislava yet again.
Mrs T drives us to the Main station
I wheel the luggage to the other end
The ticket office situated well for
The subway users
But not for those who are dropped off
At the station’s arrival side.
Unfortunate design
Mr T always uses strong words to
Vent his pent-up anger
But perhaps more so battling with age.
Don’t we all?
The smooth train ride settles tempers
Down
In the cooled down coach.
Arriving at Petrzalka’s station
The cab reserved by Mr T
Already waiting at the curb for us.
Fun Taxi’s driver calls out for Mr T
And other tourists will have to take
Another cab.
At the Radisson where Mr T is known
We leave our two suitcases in store.
The ceremony of laying so called
‘Stumbling Stones’ (Stolpersteine)
Has become s growing custom to
Honour all people who were deported
To the death camps by the Nazis
More so a lasting impression with
One survivor of a family of originally
Five members.
The surviving sister reading from her
Notes.
Mr T talks to the American Ambassador
And we all shake hands.
I feel the pain welling up in the surviving
Daughter
An elderly elfin-like person
About Mr T’s age,
Then we are off on foot to Jasmin
In the Jewish Quarter
Mr T’s old haunt.
Suzanna talks about the history of
The city and Veronika communicates
With me through her if we cannot get
The meaning of a word.
It’s high time to eat and there’s a bit
Of a muddle with the food we ordered
But in the end I receive two portions
Of noodles that had been split up
For no apparent reason.
Noodles galore.
Excellent like the huge glass of
Local brew.
zoltanzelan
ZJG-POetry’18.
