Startle
They walked slowly, gazing at their worn out shoes.
The light had a joyous, childish insolence —
it didn’t hide any of the deficiencies. They stopped
outside the flower shops. With a sense of conspiracy
they breathed deeply the thick aroma of the flowers.
Then they sped up, turned the corner of the garden,
came out of the shade of the trees. Agamemnon’s
big dog appeared in front of them; it showed them
his long, snow white, shining teeth.
Manolis Aligizakis 