Tolstoy, Tchaikovsky, Vereschchagin Poem by Saiom Shriver

Tolstoy has penned a description
of a samovar which
ignites beyond time... as the
reader gets up to make a hot drink.

Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker
from another century sparks
old bones out of the chair
to dance.

Vereshchagin's paintbrush
from the corridors of time
speeds up our heartbeats
as we look upon revolutionaries
strapped to cannons..
giving a new meaning to being
cannonized...
as they are blown apart
by people with less compassion
even than Bonaparte.