He Must Always Believe In Himself

Lake Baikal, July 2010

He was born on the shores of Baikal,
At the dawn of his race.
Before his birth a rainbow-clad pheasant announced his coming;
She came with a silk banner floating alongside her in the air
She came to perch on the highest mountain of the Kamar Daban
And there she proclaimed with a human tongue,
Lo, I give you today this child
The bearer of truth, the liberator of your nation,
The idol of every man and woman and child,
Bastion against the weaknesses of Common Man.

She departed with a blinding flash,
But Jaromil's name was left behind on the banner draped over the rock.
Nine months later he was born
In deep January Baikal was unfrozen in an instant
And the river Angara burst its banks
Three suns graced the heavens above
Adorned by seven rainbows.
All the animals in the wilderness were awakened
They sang in unison with the heavenly bodies
"All praise be to Jaromil,
Nothing can exist without him.
Nothing can have meaning if not for him.
He the most perfect being that has come among us;
Let us never stop loving him!"

In a blinding flash fifteen years had gone by.
In the morning of the deepest January the sun does rarely rise
Jaromil rises from his matress from a good rest.
The decaying hovel does not faze him;
The dismal winter does not deter him.
He believes that he is special.
He believes that one day all things will be below him.
He believes that the day will come when nothing can stop him.
He looks with disdain at the row of houses across the street;
The sad abodes of losers.
He must show them what he is made of.
He must prove to them that he is the most worthy.
He must conquer them with his air of superiority.

In the deepest January, alas, the sun has not risen to accompany him,
Nor has the rainbows made themselves seen.
But the time is not yet here, there are much more important things to do.
Jaromil pulls the blanket over his head again.
He needs more morale to keep himself going:
He must see once again the heralding pheasant;
He must draw more strength from the chorus of beasts;
He must always believe in himself;
He must never stop dreaming.