Clarity,
Office 17622,
PO Box 6945,
London.
W1A 6US
United Kingdom
Phone/ Voicemail:
+44 (0)20 3287 3053 (UK)
+1 (561) 459-4758 (US).
Over the water
a note from a stringed instrument,
another on a drum, one
after the other,
becoming louder
until the valley resonates with song evoking the deeds
of an adventurer
who in time with each beat
accepted the odds
in his quest to find mountains
where the gods reside.
On
and on,
into the clouds with only indomitable will
and a staff as his companion
faced with an avalanche
he sheltered under an outcrop,
meeting the iciest winds
he knelt behind a tree,
tormented with the thought of never arriving
he drank a potion
left by a soothsayer
and bent his head toward the fading light:
successor to a kingdom
where day burns the early hours,
aspiration as the many through gilded snow
in his wake ascend the peak
a nest
egg robbers can never espy.
I, too,
shall savour rhythms nearing the threshold
enough to plunge
into the market place with the intention
of helping a stranger find his way,
assist a child tie her lace and
when the band is in tune
sing of a mortal
who reached his goal
or,
through blood stained eyes, follow the example
of a lonelier heart under my breath:
I found no solace in your friendship
or comfort in your vision,
but seek you to hear of cruelty on shivering lips,
frost bitten hands lifting a sword,
a ghost sheltering in the rain
soon reborn
as a snake in the wilderness
seek you in your darker moments,
excess of fear the days will curdle,
light go green
with bile,
the heart drench with phoenix tears
because I love you.
(Dedicated to the Tang Dynasty poet, Li He)
a note from a stringed instrument,
another on a drum, one
after the other,
becoming louder
until the valley resonates with song evoking the deeds
of an adventurer
who in time with each beat
accepted the odds
in his quest to find mountains
where the gods reside.
On
and on,
into the clouds with only indomitable will
and a staff as his companion
faced with an avalanche
he sheltered under an outcrop,
meeting the iciest winds
he knelt behind a tree,
tormented with the thought of never arriving
he drank a potion
left by a soothsayer
and bent his head toward the fading light:
successor to a kingdom
where day burns the early hours,
aspiration as the many through gilded snow
in his wake ascend the peak
a nest
egg robbers can never espy.
I, too,
shall savour rhythms nearing the threshold
enough to plunge
into the market place with the intention
of helping a stranger find his way,
assist a child tie her lace and
when the band is in tune
sing of a mortal
who reached his goal
or,
through blood stained eyes, follow the example
of a lonelier heart under my breath:
I found no solace in your friendship
or comfort in your vision,
but seek you to hear of cruelty on shivering lips,
frost bitten hands lifting a sword,
a ghost sheltering in the rain
soon reborn
as a snake in the wilderness
seek you in your darker moments,
excess of fear the days will curdle,
light go green
with bile,
the heart drench with phoenix tears
because I love you.
(Dedicated to the Tang Dynasty poet, Li He)