China Song (Zhong Guo Ge Qu) Poem by David Lewis Paget

China Song (Zhong Guo Ge Qu)



Last night I heard a Chinese song
That conjured almond eyes,
It swelled and soared, and took the air
I sought to breathe, my friend,
That song poured out the sadness that
I’d seen behind your lies,
It soared and swelled, and slipped and dipped,
Heartbroken at the end.

But you just smiled and chattered,
Though your words were terse and bleak,
They hid some strange confusion, and
A hurt that would not mend,
I’d seen you cry before, with not
A tear on either cheek,
When Chinese tear-ducts dry, but cry -
It seems that you pretend.

Five thousand years of sorrow
Taught you Chinese not to weep,
To show no strong emotion, to
Accept the fate you’re sent,
The pendulum that swings one way,
May cut you while you sleep,
But always swings the other way
Confucius say - my friend!

So all your love and laughter and
The sadness of your past,
Is built in to the music that your
Cultured songsters write,
And truly, when I listen
To that swelling sound at last,
Your tears well up, and overflow
From my eyes, every night.

26 December 2007

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David Lewis Paget

David Lewis Paget

Nottingham, England/live in Australia
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