Haibun
The Secret Code
“We all held our
breath, waiting for the electronic current to pass from one
hemisphere of the cat's brain to the other…" The words
explode out of his mouth.
"Please slow down, I can't keep up with you."
"My friend, you have the brain of a poet; it works too
slowly. In short, we were successful. We heard the brain
pulse loud and clear.”
long way
home…
humming Yellow Submarine
to myself
A Story about Life
He holds the
baby tightly outside a Starbucks window. Inside the cafe,
she leans toward the man in Armani, whispering in his ear.
Two cups of coffee untouched.
her
silence . . .
the bare maple holding
a hazy moon
Loving the Collective, Loving to work
Strolling past
Jianguo Road, Beijing, I see row upon row of workers in red
uniforms doing their company cheer:
Give me a W!
Give me an A! Give me an L! Give me a squiggly!
Give me an M! Give me an A! Give me an R! Give me a
T!...
When working in
state-run department stores, Chinese workers used to look
like stern-faced mandarins, keeping a watchful eye on goods.
They now sing company songs together, persuade all the
passers-by to go into the store, and most importantly,
answer picky customers’ questions with big smiles.
Red Guards, Red Guards…
anything new
under the rising sun
(Note: The title
and the opening line of the haiku come from the lyrics of We
Are Chairman Mao's Red Guards)
