Poem for Virgil Banescu

Matthew Rohrer

Bear and reindeer cut up on a plate.
An endless cave.
A duvet of darkness.
Your notes piping and plaintive I think
are still down there though
they traveled ahead of you
too. They walked all the way
back to the vineyards
where we slept. You were
now and then just a tiny
bit cruel to children
because you were a child.