i would have wanted
something like the river of my childhood
the faint noise of slow water
bird songs and muddy shores
full of wonders

or something like the sweet red wine
of my father's small vineyard
mixed with sweat and tears
translucent blood with specks of gold
the ichor of simple life

but i had barely managed
to crawl through the barbed wire of these lines
like an unknown soldier
in no man's land