[idiomatic english: do not burn the midnight oil]
You see, Elvis has left the building
And you may be glad to see the back of
A hot potato
Jumping on the bandwagon
But once in a blue moon
You will hear it on the grapevine
Rather than straight from the horse’s mouth
Which is a far cry
From the best thing since sliced bread
Something you can see eye to eye
While cutting the mustard
By drawing all the best of both worlds
To make a long story short
Now if you feel a bit under the weather
Why not just let the cat out of the bag
Or you might just sit on the fence
Give it the benefit of doubt
And then hit the sack
Even in this heat of the moment
[at the threshold]
From the darkest moment
Of last winter to the heaviest fog
Of this summer, I fumbled all my way
To this spot, where I stood, hesitating
As I tried to pull the structure
(Actually meant to be pushed?)
And push it while might mean
To be pulled. Confused and
Confounded, I slid it, folded it
Turned it, tampered with it
Through trial and error, but still
Failed to move the blockade
Sesame, open! –
Am I facing a fake door
Or just bad design?
[your cup]
Whatever contains h2o, the origin of life, could
Be contained in it, always ready for another fill
Whether it is bubbling with heat, or
Chilled with sandy juice, it can hold
Any fluid with all the calmness that will push down
Impurities into the bottom as unwanted sediments
Most tolerant, and most receptive: green tea
Black coffee, red wine, fresh blood, sour milk
You are jealous of it, a container ready to hold even
The heaviest water, and would love to be more like it
In spirit, as you take it to your lips, closer to your heart
Like these words that are trying to contain your spirit
Yuan Changming, 8-time Pushcart nominee and author of 4 chapbooks (including Mindscaping [2014]), is the most widely published poetry author who speaks Mandarin but writes English. Tutoring and co-editing Poetry Pacific with Allen Qing Yuan in Vancouver, Changming has poetry appearing in 969 literary publications across 31 countries, including Best Canadian Poetry (2009,12,14), BestNewPoemsOnline and Threepenny Review.
You see, Elvis has left the building
And you may be glad to see the back of
A hot potato
Jumping on the bandwagon
But once in a blue moon
You will hear it on the grapevine
Rather than straight from the horse’s mouth
Which is a far cry
From the best thing since sliced bread
Something you can see eye to eye
While cutting the mustard
By drawing all the best of both worlds
To make a long story short
Now if you feel a bit under the weather
Why not just let the cat out of the bag
Or you might just sit on the fence
Give it the benefit of doubt
And then hit the sack
Even in this heat of the moment
[at the threshold]
From the darkest moment
Of last winter to the heaviest fog
Of this summer, I fumbled all my way
To this spot, where I stood, hesitating
As I tried to pull the structure
(Actually meant to be pushed?)
And push it while might mean
To be pulled. Confused and
Confounded, I slid it, folded it
Turned it, tampered with it
Through trial and error, but still
Failed to move the blockade
Sesame, open! –
Am I facing a fake door
Or just bad design?
[your cup]
Whatever contains h2o, the origin of life, could
Be contained in it, always ready for another fill
Whether it is bubbling with heat, or
Chilled with sandy juice, it can hold
Any fluid with all the calmness that will push down
Impurities into the bottom as unwanted sediments
Most tolerant, and most receptive: green tea
Black coffee, red wine, fresh blood, sour milk
You are jealous of it, a container ready to hold even
The heaviest water, and would love to be more like it
In spirit, as you take it to your lips, closer to your heart
Like these words that are trying to contain your spirit
Yuan Changming, 8-time Pushcart nominee and author of 4 chapbooks (including Mindscaping [2014]), is the most widely published poetry author who speaks Mandarin but writes English. Tutoring and co-editing Poetry Pacific with Allen Qing Yuan in Vancouver, Changming has poetry appearing in 969 literary publications across 31 countries, including Best Canadian Poetry (2009,12,14), BestNewPoemsOnline and Threepenny Review.