This time, I did it with more intention of following the subject/verbs, etc., replacement method. It tends to yeild semi-worthwhile results, usually.
Missing You
-Shu Ting, translated from the Chinese by Carolyn Kizer
A multi-colored chart without a boundary;
An equation chalked on the board, with no solution;
A one-stringed lure that tells the beads of rain;
A pair of useless oars that never cross the water.
Waiting buds in suspended animation;
The setting sun is watching from a distance.
Though in my mind there may be an enormous ocean,
What emerges is the sum: a pair of tears.
Yes, from these vistas, from these depths,
Only this.
______
A luster-plucked eye without a plastic eyelid;
A doll sliced from a book of other dolls, with no tabs to attach her apron;
A cross-slinked slinky that collapsed metal against metal.
A pair of trike wheels that always sagged on nails.
Weighted seesaws in locked arrest;
The mature eye looks through a brand new microscope, looks through a fun house mirror, looks with kaleidoscope vision
Though in the recess of adulthood there may be an abandoned swing set,
What we dust off is the toy box: a pair of skates.
Yes, from this fledgling desert, from these captioned memories,
Only this.
No comments:
Post a Comment