Tuesday, August 23, 2005
Perfume River
The Perfume River is a magical place in Viet Nam. Here are my impressions put in the form I like best, a poem
People who make their living on the river,
growing corn along her sides
who've learned to bathe in muddy waters
brought thick sand up from her belly
retrieving gravel from her shallows
conveyer belt
concrete fate
children swim, backs to the morning sun
boats, taken under tow,
trusting the rope
trees with crutches
in the hills above,
the dead have stone eyes
crave the green of another tommorrow
People who make their living on the river,
growing corn along her sides
who've learned to bathe in muddy waters
brought thick sand up from her belly
retrieving gravel from her shallows
conveyer belt
concrete fate
children swim, backs to the morning sun
boats, taken under tow,
trusting the rope
trees with crutches
in the hills above,
the dead have stone eyes
crave the green of another tommorrow
