Presented here are selected poems written in the 21st century.
Some are translations of poems originally written in Chinese.
(Click on any divider between poems to return
here.)
Taking Pictures of My Wife and A Ninety-Pound Baby Male Panda
Cow & Cowhide
Eiffel Tower
Pyramid At the Louvre
Biltmore Mansion
You Should've Stopped There
Year of the Dragon
Making of a Poem
Excavation
Breath
A Heart for a Heart
Niagara Falls
Time Difference
On the Towpath
Valentine's Day
Poem of Seven Steps
BIAN-ZHONG: An Ancient Chinese
Musical Instrument Unearthed
Skipping Stones
Insomnia, Xian
Dawn
The Setting Moon
A Volcanic Eruption
Bricks
Words Not Said
The Filly
Ode to a Retired War-Horse
At the Flower Market
Lies, Lies, Lies
LoveStory
Jade Necklace
Hearing Songs from Childhood
Spring
Canadian Rockies
Neighbor's Flowers
Rainbow
Estate
Emergency Kit
Freedom
Scene
Incarnation
Valentine's Day
Desert Flower
On SARS Street
To Paint a Bird
New Toys
City Windows
Two Suns or More
Untitled
Stars
as if bored with the incessant flashes
he becomes restless on her lap
his sleek fur slips again and again
from her unsettled embrace
frantically I adjust my lenses
hoping to capture another image
before he sinks to the ground
or becomes extinct
whipping the cow
with a cowhide
an immediate
pain
thinking they were building again
another guillotine
merciful God swooped down
trying to pull it apart
yet its steel-reinforced base
stubborn as human sins
kept it firmly on the ground
and it was turned into a lance
pointing at the heart
of the sky
at night
we can hear
grotesque dreams rise and pop
at its very tip
like balloons
the question of immortality
never crosses his mind
when he enters the glass structure
only after seeing a mummy
grin at him
from the glass coffin
does he suddenly remember
the growing long line
at the main entrance
"where can I find thousands of spacious buildingsThis mansion, more spacious than a royal palace
to house the world's poor scholars and make them look happy"
--Tu Fu, Song of The Thatched Hut Blown Down by Autumn Wind
* Biltmore House, the largest private home built in America at the end
of the 19th century, is situated on 8,000 acres in Asheville, North Carolina.
It has 250 rooms, 65 fireplaces, 43 bathrooms, 34 bedrooms, and 3 kitchens.
first I see words coming out of your mouth
black words all UPPERCASE and bold
they become so dark and dense that I think they are bullets
wait a second they ARE bullets now all streaming hissing
smoking burning toward us
we scatter and run for cover waiting for something
to happen but are surprised to hear a sudden silence
explode in our ears
I look up and find you just standing there
with your mouth wide open
as if you are running out of ammunition
but from the expression on your twisted face
and out-stretched tongue there must still be
something inside that wants to come out
for a few seconds you remain in your frozen posture
then right before our eyes your body shatters and breaks up
we slowly rise and gather around
trying to pick up the pieces but find they are so badly burned
that they crumble at a touch
you should've stopped there really
before you opened your mouth
under
inflated bellies
there are time bombs
busily ticking
ticking
ticking...
* Contrary to Western myths, dragons are regarded auspiciously in China as an
imperial symbol. The popular notion that babies born in the Year of the Dragon
are exceedingly lucky and destined to have a bright future has caused a baby boom
in China every twelve years.
when his wife's warm gaze
turns into an icicle
he knows there's a deep freeze
on his own face
but before the bloom
of its first flower
the earth must endure
a long long winter
so he once again attains
though not without a qualm
a peace of mind
and arduously awaits
the clear and crisp sound
ice breaking brows relaxing
composedly he spreads out
a sheet of paper
and puts down
his first word
along with gravel and soil
they remove the trees
with an excavator
making the dark sky
even darker
tomorrow they will build a skyscraper
right here on this grassland
and decorate the hollow eyes
with twinkling glass
a puff of air
from your sweet sigh
must have caused this breeze
that entices the flowers
to release their fragrance
and sends a shudder
passing through the leaves
and me
* An Egyptian man recently had one eye removed under the orders of a court
in Saudi Arabia for throwing acid at another Egyptian six years ago, damaging his
left eye. It was the first time in more than 40 years that the literal eye-for-an-eye
punishment had been carried out in the conservative kingdom.”¾Reuters, Aug. 15, 2000.
splashing black ink
onto the sky
of memory
always triggers
a downpour
of deafening
white
it's morning
he paces up and down the room
in silence
in a distant room
she also paces up and down
in silence
yet it is already evening
thousands of miles apart
they both walk to a window
and look up at the half-lit sky
in silence
knowing at this moment
a flick of the eyelids or a twitch of the lips
will certainly set off
an avalanche
cut into the flesh
the rope
raw as original sin
pulls them back
on the muddy shore
each step a struggle
for the last stand
the endless succession of ayo ayo
is neither complaint
nor song
just to remind themselves
still alive
with the fortitude of steel
and the passion of gold
I am sure their love
will at least last
until Valentine's Day
* LONDON (Reuters) Two complete strangers have handcuffed themselves together and flown
to New York in a bid to win $7,200 each if they stay locked in love until Valentine's Day. -- 2001.2.9
seven steps
the distance
between life
and death
each step
causes the onlookers to break out
in a cold sweat
each step
tramples our mind
to blank
yet he makes every step
into a chiming rhyme
and turns his boiling pity
into a poem
* Historical background: Feeling threatened by his gifted younger brother Cao Zhi, Cao Pi, the founder of the Wei Dynasty (220-265 A.D.), ordered him to compose a poem within the time limit of taking seven steps. The following is Cao Zhi's famous Poem of Seven Steps :
Boiling in the pot are beans
underneath, the beanstalks
both came from the same roots
why burn so fiercely
they put in this time capsule
whispering wind from a bamboo grove
rippling stream under a wooden bridge
joyous shouts of children playing
gentle chat of grownups
mooing barking crowing chirping cooing cricking
and rumbling from a distant mountain
all of these and many more
they sealed and buried in the ground
to let us hear
thousands of years later
the ringing of a tranquil world
insomnia
in fact, is another sort
of sleep
if the bell atop the Bell Tower
suddenly tolls
it will still awaken him
and make him wonder
what body this body
what place this place
what time this time
of course he might just as well turn
and enter into another dream
deeper and keener
as to the plump yet not fat snore
rising and falling beside him
he knows
it's from the Tang Dynasty
awakened by the alarm clock
he starts dancing
an early-rising rooster
in the chicken coop
her love spent
yet she keeps turning
her head
as she leaves
gazing
at the vulgar man
sound asleep in bed
snoring loudly
a self-proclaimed blood relative
of the sun
the wanderer
is dead drunk
at an obscure tavern
after vomiting violently into the air
he murmurs
O mother this is my heart
the love I could never deliver
to
build
a pyramid
and see what's out there
there was something
I wanted to tell the flower
blooming before my window
she brought me spring
this morning
full of warm gratitude
I finally gathered up courage
and began
you sure are ...
when a pair of scissors
snipped both my words
and her
returning from the casino
the luckless master
stares greedily
at her unsteady slim legs
she struggles to remain
standing
unlike a retired general
it never dreams of the battlefield
as a prairie for galloping
nor mistakes the piles of corpses
for fences to be jumped over
in the riot of colors
a bee is buzzing
before a light-yellow flower
though the flower has yet to find a buyer
already the bee is exhausted
flying between past and future
between open field
and the vase on a kitchen table
its brown stinger
throbbing
in the bright sunlight
nowadays
even lie detectors
lie
if you don't believe me
just try the following question
Does this dress make me look fat?
on a desolate island
a turtle
is making love
to a rock
on a head
grey hair
is making love
with time
on a sheet of paper
a pen
is making love
with an ever-expanding
blank
a live cinder
from the Creation
stroking with your finger tips
you stir up the green flame
that flickers on your breast
then smile
and walk straight toward me
flickering across the dark open space
a firefly...
then two... then three...
soon they multiply
become flashes of lightning
reveal ragged hills
and mountains
overflowing rivers
and ravines
of a face
from white to brown to green to blue to red to purple
you dazzle us with your fast-moving dance
making heaven and earth dizzy
when we finally steady ourselves
and look around
you are already gone
I. Pines
those unafraid of the cold
please step up
immediately
the whole valley fills with pines
standing tall and erect
II. On the Columbia Icefield
in awe
facing the frozen
time
still
there are some adventurous feet
walking unsteadily toward the brink
of a hole marked with red flags
try to measure the depth
of the origin
III. Tyrrell Museum's Dinosaur Hall
at the homeland of the dinosaur
pieces of fossils large and small
are used to form a backdrop
for starry eyes
to capture and montage
raising their necks howling running chasing
such an earth-shaking scene
is definitely beyond
the capacity
of Hollywood's biggest screen
a week ago our neighbor Eddie passed away
this morning I saw the potted flowers on their patio
all drooped and withered
his wife Helen who loves flowers so much
must not have heard the weather report
warning of an early frost
faster than a roller coaster
and more breathtaking
to glide down the perfect arc
the smooth colored-glass slide
of the universe
just stretch out your hands
and close your eyes if you are afraid of heights
then utter a whoop
before the sound fully leaves your mouth
you'll reach the end of the earth
they've been plotting the earth for years
building skyscrapers
(though still far away from the sky)
now they have set their eyes
on the moon
these smart businessmen
overlook the prospects
of prime building lots
on their own belly
where anything would grow
day and night
to reach the sky
*A company in California has divided up the surface of the moon for sale. At the price of $19.99 per acre, it claims to have millions of customers worldwide.
flashlight
batteries
food
water
oh yes don't forget
rolls of plastic sheets
and duct tape
we need to seal off
fear and hatred
Freedom fries
Freedom toast
Freedom dressing
Freedom kiss
Freedom leave
what more can a Freedomman ask for?
swaying alone in the evening wind
a little blue flower in the wilderness
a passing poet with misty eyes
suddenly turns his head
and gazes upon her
one evening centuries later
a blue book of poetry
stands at the corner of a dusty bookshelf
a little blue flower in the wilderness
swaying alone in the evening wind
meticulously cultivated
to bloom in time for this occasion
or at least be in bud
these magnificent roses
trimmed and wrapped
are now showcased under neon light
with a hundredfold price tag
on love
under the setting sun
a flower of absurd red
awakens to the stinking heat
gradually
she recollects the thunder-filled nightmare
treads rumbling bullets whistling humans crying
then dead silence
finally she remembers
she was a cool little blue flower
amid the mirage
unmasked
eyes
black
in a sea of
white
when you tilt your head
this way
she will tilt hers
that way
anyhow
she is no model
posing
for no one
after mixing the colors
squinting one eye then the other
beckoning to this and that
finally you are ready to start
just then she flaps her wings
and takes off
leaving behind
a tree of
green
voice-controlled
plastic goldfishes
need no feeding
and are lively
even in poisonous water
on the heavily polluted earth
a species made of plastic
could be the next favorite toy
of God
divided by metal bars
the sky is to be sold
at retail
day and night
behind every dark window
wary eyes are watching
for the ultimate big sign
of clearance sale
finally came the news
the flesh and blood scattered
during the Big Bang
might have settled another solar system
44 light-years away
the thought of having relatives
as cultured and peaceful as the human race
aroused intense excitement throughout the world
now just let us pray
they and we worship
the same God
No one knows more
about the art of flattering
than the wind
whichever direction
the flag desires
the wind is always ready
to oblige
under the bright sun
they conspire hand in hand
to occupy the entire sky
when the flag is vague and vacillates
the wind whirls around huffing and puffing
and whenever there is a depression
the wind is always the first to abscond
leaving the downcast flag
to the rain
O stars stars
endless ever since I learned to count
I don't know any of your names
yet night after night
I lie on the grass wet with dew
looking up at you
hoping to find something
about another world
a world beyond the range
of the most powerful scope
Copyright 2004 by William Marr.
All rights reserved. Copying and reprinting are permitted so long as credit
is given and wording remains unchanged. Not to be sold in any form.
| Site Map To Various Sites |
Home Page The Art World of William Marr |