Up against the wall,
I can hold my breath
My tongue no longer
Can you read my lips?
Fire cannot put out their flame,
So give me water.
~*~
Without warning,
You give me goosebumps.
An almighty shiver
To the core of my being.
Just yesterday, spring was blooming,
Dewy fragrance graced the dawn
And children waved farewell,
Some for the last time.
O mighty Earth, O cruel sea!
By the light of the great sun,
We shall always hold you close
In love, in pain, in healing.
–okei
:)
ReplyDeleteAwesome!
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading!!
ReplyDeleteSo... what does it mean, lol?
Powerful... reminded me of what has been happening in Sendai after the tsunami!
ReplyDeleteYep, Nancy! The last three verses were inspired by thoughts for the Japanese recovering from the shaking of the earthquake, waves of the tsunami and the contamination of the nuclear disaster.
ReplyDeleteThe first two verses, which are haikus, were originally inspired by the peaceful voices standing up for dignity being killed by their ruthless rulers, but apply also to the Japan reactors perhaps? The "I" is not me, but some kind of empathic projection, feeling for all the people in trouble and wishing them the best.
The real "I" is still exploring what it means, which is why I asked...
I thought of what happened in Japan when I read the last verse. It was a mighty, brutal sea indeed. Ironic that it was the same sea that for some had provided their livelihood before the disaster.
ReplyDeleteYour haikus somehow got me thinking of Libya, actually. What is becoming of our world?
And oh, the Earth Hour is today (on the last Saturday of March). Lights off at 8.30 pm, everyone!
And ironic also that it's the same sea which was being used to help cool the nuclear fuel rods after the disaster.
ReplyDeleteYou read me well! :^) Libya is but one corner of a bigger movement sweeping the world, and ultimately the wise rulers will "be like water" as Bruce Lee once said (and you once wrote about). ;^)
On thinking more, the "I" is maybe like "sentient life" that is being shaken up by forces that lack feeling. The goosebumps, shivering, children waving and the light of the great sun are all symbols of life, but they hint, perhaps slightly artificially, at their cruel counterparts in the earthquake, the tsunami waves and the nuclear contamination (unnatural, though they too are part of nature, well apart from maybe the latter).
Oh, thanks for the reminder!!
ReplyDeleteA chance for a candle-lit dinner, heh heh.
ReplyDeleteSweet!
ReplyDeleteI did a half-hour meditation. And felt very refreshed.