Plum Blossoms
by Wing Tek Lum
A hush descends upon the hard earth,
betraying no tears.
The gaunt plum hugs the river.
Its branches, shorn of leaves,
reach out like stark cries
in the Winter night, a spider’s agony.
Yet nubs of blossoms
nudge through the crinkled bark
on one twig, then another.
Buds nestle in crooks and crevices,
white as frost, grudging smiles,
a compassion nourished from within,
seeking air, seeking light.
From THE NANJING MASSACRE: POEMS by Wing Tek Lum with permission from Bamboo Ridge Press.
Wing Tek Lum is a Honolulu businessman and poet. His first collection of poetry, EXPOUNDING THE DOUBTFUL POINTS, was published by Bamboo Ridge Press in 1987. He is the 2014 recipient of an Elliot Cades Award for Literature. You can find out more about his work at www.bambooridge.com.
Dusk at Kauaʻi Surf
by Frances Kakugawa
A sadness falls over me
As man’s torches
Replace the sun
Beyond the red mountains.
A giant Japanese fan
Ripples out in circlets
Around a mallard
As she dips her head
Into her wings
To nibble a bug
On the quiet pond.
Quietly the fan disintegrates
To the motor boat ripples
Trailing each mallard
Across the lake to shore.
[gn_divider]Overnight Guest
by Frances Kakugawa
i am an overnight guest
in their brand new home,
both girls, instead of pulling straws
sleep with me
on a king-sized bed
with me sandwiched in the middle.
giggles, giggles, betwixt the sheets,
”go to sleep!” “stop poking me!”
bring more giggles
but even giggles soon get sleepy.
brandi is sound asleep on my right,
nicole on my left slide to the edge,
proclaiming, “I love to sleep near the edge.”
i curve one arm around nicole,
holding her in before
she falls like icarus
into total darknness.
i lay awake, thinking of life,
how some of us live near the edge
taking risks, pursuing dreams, living
outside of little white boxes,
often teetering on one foot.
only in childhood do we know,
someone’s arm is always there,
holding us in from over the edge.
and this is how it ought to be
when we are young and trusting
in our parents’ home.
A local author and poet, Frances H. Kakugawa’s works include Kapoho, Mosaic Moon, and Wordsworth Dances the Waltz. She received a Ka Palapala Poʻokela Award for her keiki book Wordsworth the Poet.
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