Author’s Prayer ILYA KAMINSKY   If I speak for the dead, I must leave this animal of my body,   I must write the same poem over and over, for an empty page is the white flag of their surrender.   If I speak for them, I must walk on the edge of myself, I must live as a blind man   who runs through rooms without touching the furniture.   Yes, I live. I can cross the streets asking “What year is it?” I can dance in my sleep and laugh   in front of the mirror. Even sleep is [...]