A lumbering man, he was not in flesh and bone
as large as he looked, though big enough in spirit
-bearing, as he did, a famous islandic name-

to take on history’s burdens, tracing kinships,
the archeology of events. Hard-wired to hunt
and gather documents and other scraps of fitful

writing, he surrendered them all sadly, knowing
that no one he had ever known (or anyone he
could ever know) would value them as he did.

George Monteiro

Windham, CT
July 18, 2010

George Monteiro is Professor Emeritus of English and Portuguese and Brazilian Studies, Brown University.