In memory of Dan Bergstein

A man raises his hands
he is nude
one may dress him like girls dress up their Barbie dolls
sometimes in the flight suit of a pilot surrendering
to the enemy
in a prison uniform with a yellow star
in the crimson gown of a Caesar addressing his
victorious armies
with the robe of a priest or preacher
or in the work clothes of a man who signals “STOP” to a
semi-trailer truck carrying gravel
drowning: to die, to disappear
drawing: imprinting a trace
I must learn to speak from the place where surrendering
and victory are one.