“Love conquers all; let us, too, yield to Love!” — Virgil, Eclogue X
Let us too, then, yield to Love
Heart within and God above
And push past mind-made dams
The barrage what clog-jams
Let that amor river flow
Heedless nor headless go
Rather, lucid with force
Versed in its own prose
Age, beauty, burdens cast
Asunder cast, and fast
Rid of self-ridicule
Asunder cast faux jewels
Embrace, embrace in its grace
Hold that ether in this vase
Hold on tight and hold on long
Blow that flute; sing that song
Look her in her eyes and kiss
Clasp her cheeks with bliss
Part bangs in the mid; plant lips
Grasp hands; twine fingertips
Scoop her tears, alleve her fears
Bear what leers and what jeers
Stand strong-armed, thick-skinned
Brave storm thunder, desert wind
Brave your own thoughts and past
Brave what horrors eyed-aghast
Brave first what you’d brave last
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In Amor Towles’ A Gentleman in Moscow, the Russian Revolution is a few years old but the country is still in a state of upheaval. The ruling bodies are on a mission to root out individuals whom they consider to be a destabilising force. Their attention turns to Count Alexander Rostov, a suave and handsome member of the aristocracy who has gained a reputation as a poet but whose work is considered counter-revolutionary by the Emergency Committee of the People’s Commissariat for Internal Affairs.
