Poem: Of Protesilaos (inspired by Bertolt Brecht)

2026-08-08

Inspired by Bertolt Brecht’s “Von armen B.B.” (For poor B.B.).

Of Protesilaos


Protesilaos, rare in name and temperament
Hailing from the ghost village
in the land of the cypress tree
My refugee mother and contrarian father
raised me where rudderless ships
travel between worlds

Born in the age of the dragon
with eyes of indeterminate colour
like the liminality I traverse
In salt I am forever covered
and Mediterranean zest I bring
to the solitary highlands I inhabit

Stable as the falcon valley rocks
I keep in my company wolf and sheep
My house stands between ancient oaks
where eagles fly above the canes
Peaceful dove and crafty crow alike
find shelter in my midst

The burden of duty I always carry
to inspire through earnest deed
earthbound action of skyward thought
In slow pace content I am to discern
the common in the multitude
and many through the one

Transanimated hope I am
and ever-growing grapevine
From fact to myth I proceed
with equanimous heart
to offer people gifts galore
that were never mine to keep

When the brightest dog barks
while frogs are silent
in the river of milk I dive
to reach at the furthest edges
the temple few can fathom
where my next mission awaits