I wander into the park to escape the traffic of Vilnius,
sit by the river Vilnia and listen to the flow of the water
and the ducks going about their business.
Vilnia is really just a stream
which feeds into the much larger Neris River.
But Vilnius is named after the stream,
which in part means “to have waves”.
The park draws many people –
officers workers seeking the refuge of nature,
parents pushing strollers containing sleeping babies,
a few tourists speaking English and
trying to decide where to take their lunch,
the odd dog walking its human,
and nearby, a man sitting at a table
in which a chess set has been prepared with a timer.
He has been sitting there for a half hour,
but no one has yet joined him.
It’s peaceful here on this bench in the shade of a tree,
not far from the Dancing Fountain.
At peace, wanting for nothing.
