#Dragon

I first met a dragon

at eight. They say

consciousness develops then.

Aware and responsive,

perceptive; I’ll never forget!

I met my great-grandmother.

She called me ‘zhorstkyy’.

Hardface. Little old lady

who lived to be hundred

and two, drank vodka

every night and cooked

for all – every day!

She told my mother

this: the day she

spreads her wings,

‘zhorstkyy’ will become

a ‘drakon’! And fly

away.