Trafika Europe 13 - Russian Ballet

Svyatoslav Loginov

“mould among the dead” – Baudelaire’s poem seemed particularly inappropriate in this moment. …I wonder what will become of my library? They’ll divide it up, probably, or else sell it off. Who needs old books nowadays? He hadn’t amassed much money for his descendants, barely enough to pay for the funeral; his furniture and the rest of his junk can go straight to the garbage heap. The library is the only thing left, pretty much. That and the apartment, of course, a good quality three bedroom in a Stalin era building 3 . These last few fruitless years he lived in it all by himself… Well, there was Lubasha, of course, but she never did move in, just spent the night once in a while, and they tried to spend their vacations together. A self-sufficient woman… Lubasha passed away ten years back now, and he rarely thought of her. What can one recall of a relationship that never quite worked out? Sleeping together? At eighty years of age those are no longer interesting memories. And so there it is, he had spent his life essentially alone. Had he grandchildren, life would have had meaning, but Ilushka took a turn for the worse in that damnable Africa. Ilya Ilych stopped, squinted, peered into the murky horizon. There was something there. Like a fluffy white 3 Also known as “Stalinkas”, these apartments were built as part of a Sta- lin-sponsored nationwide residential construction program. In contrast with Khruschevkas, Stalinkas were known for their generous square footage, tall ceilings, and old school, high quality construction.

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