Vampiric verses

Vaccines from bloodsuckers
Some think it’s the day
for fear of the sun
they dormant and dead
coffin-bound and putrid stay
Those who wait for night’s sleep
seek their targets with deceit
Vampires bleed with stealth,
trafficking in stolen health.

• “Os Vampiros”, a song by Portuguese composer, singer, and revolutionary Jose “Zeca” Afonso (1929-1987)

Dr T.P. Wilkinson writes, teaches History and English, directs theatre and coaches cricket between the cradles of Heine and Saramago. He is also the author of Church Clothes, Land, Mission and the End of Apartheid in South Africa. Read other articles by T.P..