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AT AYA SOFIA
[January 2002]
Today it’s snowing, snowing
In Istanbul,
Stamboul, Constantinople,
New Rome, Byzantium.
The city has mislaid its Jews
And most of its Greeks.
The bones of its Armenians
Are long scattered.
Somewhere far to the north
Potemkin’s ghost
Dreams of imperial conquest.
There is a noise outside
Like someone impatient riding a horse,
Thundering at the bronze
Of the royal door
That should be closed
And is open.
Upon the dome
A huge weight
Of fallen snow.
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