Both of us, but can you imagine?

Both of Us, But Can You Imagine?

You could want suburban home, laundered, pressed and fixed

And I remain in surly concrete, or you might hate the backyard

Digging hole in the middle of yard--or I might--but the muds ooze

With rain, from the window:  Engineers losing ground, cackling

Vacations to the ruins, colonial poverty, beggars ingratiating

Palms to humid skies, or the iced cakes of cruises and pearls

And dynasty rooms ordained in packages by agent, or maybe

On the highway, kayaks hurling free from their racks like storks

Nature, sand’s edge at water, camping pit toilets, how bugs visit

At night, listening for our breathing to calm before assaulting us

Or one of us--can you imagine what if only one of us?  Both

As a marvel of our swollen lips at morning, can taste the same

Inconsiderations, how you stoke up fire.  How I veer off cliffs

In the Rockies, sailing back and forth as a playing card swoops

Can you imagine what if only one of us careened downward?

But the two of us, big headedly, watching the children, muddied

While walking to the tomb of Confucius

Piles of Dirt

Piles of dirt sprout weeds that bend to stones

Rains and worms hide humps of ancient ones

Bones poke through to bleach in Qufu’s suns

Cypress trees too right and left to fall

Hand polished burls laying split and sprawled

Slabs of entombed words are smashed or sold

Porsches now evoke a solemn awe

To be rich is glorious, is the saw

All the other virtues aren’t as raw

Though Kongzi was a hard-hit chisel

Winds would still sculpt a person in full

Would he have gone unfound in that hole

     Piles of dirt = Ancient burial practice, found in the cemetery of 

     Confucius in Qifu, as well as anywhere one looks in fields throughout China.

     Cypress = Conifer known for its longevity and heavy, burled trunks,

     which are honored for the symbolism and heritage.

     To be rich is glorious = Attributed to Deng Xiaoping, Chairman of the People’s

     Republic of China, and symbol of “capitalism with Chinese characteristics.”

     Kongzi = Confucius

     Hole = Confucius was abandoned as an infant by his mother in a shallow

     cave because of his ugliness.  Kept alive by an eagle and tiger, his mother

     realized her mistake and dedicated to his education.

Written along Westlake, Hangzhou

Kyeongja Considers Her Childhood at Xi Hu

Next to me, Kyeongja 

Winding a long shore

Where water lilies coerce

Branches to the water

How she sees beyond

Arched bridges:  Korea

Her careening seas

Missing on Mendota

As a girl, her teeth

Flirted with the sky

Wondering how wide

Tae Pyung Yang

     

      Tae Pyung Yang = Pacific Ocean

Attempted a Chinese tone. Fun to read, as its sound conveys as much as the content.

On Rivers

How many Hongwu stones
      to the Tomb

   Of Zhu Yuanzhang?

Where is the fabled song
      aloft in the

   Temple Kongzi?

Why are stars hiding 
     behind a silken

   Sky of Qizhou?

What price elegance 
     along the shores of

   Xi Hu, Hangzhou?

When do souls rise
     liberated from the

   Pits of Nanjing?

Who is this grasping 
     for dreams atop

   Pagoda Lei Feng?

    Are the questions deep
Or do they float like petals on

        Rivers in Zhongguo?