On a ragged eve
march in Moscow
the USSR
we came down the steps
of an Aeroflot flight from Delhi
waving hammer and sickle
flags in red
I was sent to study socialism.
Between icicles and
a darkening sky
your laughing eyes
tagged on to me
the pioneers welcomed
sang:
"There is Lenin everywhere"
At a solitary café, I asked her abruptly Are you a KGB?
Between sputtering cappuccinos
her head bent back
in a roar of laughter
maybe, maybe not.
We ran holding hands
on a snow-splashed street
socialism in your eyes
socialism on your arched back
socialism was you & I
in a rundown hotel night.
