The day was mild

say eyewitnesses

when a white cloud rose toward the sky

First all the Stations of the Cross

unwillingly soared up toward the heavens

With Jesus in the rear as usual

bearing his own cross

Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows

covered her eyes

With a lily in his teeth Saint Anthony looked for

the forgotten

young God behind the heavy doors of the baptistery

Saint Mark refused to move away

He is the patron and for every event

there must be witnesses

for the trustworthiness of the tale

The mosaic behind the main altar

by the grace of the author showing the monastery’s founders

broke up into thousands of colorful stones

Each one in its cell carried the consciousness thereof

Even if the author survives they will never find

themselves at the same table

on the picture

When the monastery at Plehan moved up to the heavens

it left the kneeling bench behind

for those who repent before it’s too late

which little Jesus on Saint Anthony’s back

strongly doubted that they would

All the minor saints repudiated the earth

That was more or less understandable

since they had a second homeland in reserve

On the chestnut tree out front

both bells remained

hanging

The last thing the monastery’s protector

Saint Mark saw as he knelt down

was the sun through the smoke

white and thin

like a communion wafer

Zagreb, 1993

tr. W. Browne 2025.01

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