Awakening

by mike yuan

as a stony statue
sitting still under a tremendous tree
my inner self fallen into a deep doze
while i travel around all the time
trying to find the right path
through the thorny bushes
leading to the hill top
a large flock of nameless birds

held in their unsinging mouths
a hundred rainbow flowers
following me in the smiling sky
as if to escort my journey home
or ready to celebrate my birthday
the second i see my naked self
all the birds and flowers are gone
except the big shadowless tree
standing against the serenity of skies

(sept.8, 2004)

From: 
Vancouver




ABOUT THE POET ~
Mike Yuan, also known as Yuan Zhengming in Chinese, is a 5-time Pushcart nominee and author of two poetry collections. Growing up in a remote and impoverished village in central China, Mike received his post-secondary education in Shanghai and Tianjin, worked as a college lecturer and published several monographs in addition to many journal articles before moving to Canada as an international student. With a PhD in English from the University of Saskatchewan, Mike currently lives and works as a property manager in Vancouver. Since mid-2005, Mike Yuan has had poetry appear in more than 700 literary magazines and anthologies across 27 countries.


Last updated November 27, 2013