A POEM: ‘That Land’ . . . My Emigration From the Former Soviet Union

The poem “That Land” was written in 2020, almost four decades after my emigration from the former Soviet Union… And never the less it became one of the multiple closures of that distant but global event. Refined culture and art, the eloquent and volumetric language, the kindness, brilliancy and humbleness of people, all this left a mark in my soul and my heart that will never be erased…

But of course like a coin, life always presents two sides. The choice is ours and I had made mine.

THAT LAND…

I came from the country
Where lives do not count,
Where most of the people
Are nailed to the ground.
Where husbands and wives
Cannot trust to each other.
All are viciously watched
By the eye of “Big Brother.”
Yes, I came from the country
Of beautiful gardens,
With the flickering fountains
In the breathtaking castles.
Brilliant poets,
Magnificent music and arts…
Still the land of oppression
Land that frazzles the hearts.
Land that bleeds tirelessly,
Irrigating the earth,
Where tears like water
Pouring hard all across.
Where people are carrying
Their cross to the end.
Disobeying is deadly
And the life is being spent.
If you wish to survive
Keep your smile and pretend.
Nothing is left to strive,
All your heights have been bent…

Excerpted from: “Speed Flight Poetry“, 7/17/20

©Katherine Woodward 2020. All rights reserved.

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