Farewell Talk: For Liu and Yuan Hongqi See You Next Life, Darling: To LHX
by Changming Yuan
Well... Old Liu, I have said all That I have ...to say, just as I've done All that I can ...do
Sure, Old Man, so you can die A happy death now, and I will Follow to accompany you shortly
What a comfort! We have two ...filial sons To ...outlive us, and three great grandsons To carry our ...bloodline on
Indeed, they bring true honor to the family Name: one is a pioneering engineer In Silicon Valley, another is doing his PhD In New York, and the youngest has published A poetry book though still a teenager in Vancouver
But both of us ...grew up in poor Chinese villages You ...barely finished your elementary school While I had only two ...years of education
Really, this contrast alone makes us all happy And proud enough, just as our elder son called You to say so from Canada yesterday
Well, fare...well, I am going first; once... I find the Way to Heaven, I will ...return to take you...
But don't be in such a hurry yet, Old Man For I wish to take care of our two ageing sons For a few more years. Hey, nihao Nurse
See You Next Life, Darling: to LHX
by Changming Yuan
On that evening, as our titanic Finally began to sink, how I desperately Combed our whole boat To find you the only lifebuoy aboard!
But when I returned empty-handed I saw you struggling fiercely In the water of cold night Already far beyond my reach
[With the ring hidden beside your arm]
Changming Yuan, 8-time Pushcart nominee and author of 4 chapbooks (including Mindscaping [2014]), is the world's most widely published poetry author who speaks Mandarin but writes English. Growing up in a remote village, Yuan began to learn English at 19 and published several monographs before leaving China. With a Ph.D. in English, Yuan currently tutors and co-edits Poetry Pacific with Allen Qing Yuan in Vancouver. Since mid-2005, Changming has had poetry appearing in 989 literary publications across 31 countries, including Best Canadian Poetry, BestNewPoemsOnline, Cincinnati Review and Threepenny Review.