“He went on two legs, wore clothes and was a human being, but nevertheless
he was in reality a wolf of the Steppes.” — Herman Hesse, Steppenwolf
Tableaus of boyhood — usually sun-
Filled moments — don’t include betrayals yet.
My body, lean and lithe, enjoyed moonbeams’
Hypnotic kisses on the windowsills
That honeyed me to sleep, revealing dream’s
Chaotic circus — wolf howls beckoning.
My bed-time story: Aesop’s House-dog said,
“Ah, Cousin, your irregular life will
Soon be the ruin of you!” Gaunt Wolf then saw
A collar, liberty chained, strangled, gone.
The curse condemned me, collared my freedom,
Its brooding eye eradicating will,
The power of familiarity,
Split me like a tree grown heavy from living.
I’d grown attached to my normality.
Now a curse is my custodian. Full moons
Personify nights a reluctant Wolf
Awakens, throat-dark emotions unleashed.
About the Author
Native New Yorker and award-winner, LindaAnn LoSchiavo is a member of British Fantasy Society, HWA, SFPA, and The Dramatists Guild. Titles published in 2024: “Always Haunted: Hallowe’en Poems” [Wild Ink], “Apprenticed to the Night” [UniVerse Press], and “Felones de Se: Poems about Suicide” [Ukiyoto]. Forthcoming: “Cancer Courts My Mother” [Prolific Pulse Press, 2025]. Book Accolades earned: Elgin Award for “A Route Obscure and Lonely” and Chrysalis BREW Project’s Award for Excellence for “Always Haunted: Hallowe’en Poems.”
