WRITING FOR STRANGERS
By Olaf  Dammann

1

where do storks come
from? if nothing else,

tender enchantrix, where
is your self, your

bones are wrapped in
silver linings, that

every cloud must
have, like ends of

tunnels must
have light



2

strangers, ideal
companions on
trips to the uncertain

if the goal is
unknown, the road
unclear, the

medium and speed
of travel elusive,
wherever we go and

whenever we get there,
we will remain strangers.
whatever might

happen, it will be the
only connection
between us. The

single remarkable
spot on the map of
the time that we

share. your skin is so
soft, no, much softer,
so warm and

its taste will
remind me of
spring



3

superb concentration of souls
dublin rotten
magnificent rainbows
flight attendants
prepare for landing

phil collins
philanthropy
philibuster
philantelistic
philander

city lights
dreams hidden
away

in centuries will
ripen the fruits
of starvation
and cold



4

maple leaves
tall white lies

brief encounters
grief unfolding

life in the shadows
damage done




5

as every flower wilts and
every youth makes room

for new departures,

so will our love remain
in flux in silence in itself

storks will never
sing the song the

lonely loon sang
all along

olafdammann

About the Author:

Olaf Dammann was born in Germany in 1961. He has published his work ever since he was a teenager, until recently mainly in German poetry journals and anthologies. His collection „Flüstermond“, with illustrations by Christian Hinrich, was published by Husum in 2007. A self published collection „Small Worlds“  was a finalist for the 2013 Four Way Books Levis Prize in Poetry. Olaf lives in Newton, Massachusetts.