As if it were
yesteryear
When the river lashed out
its rage
When the A-bomb unleashed
its power
When the wee tiny baby cried
his first cry
Today fatherhood strikes
once
Strikes
twice
Strikes
thrice
As if it were
yesteryear
When handy sandy writing
board
Was plowed with squiggly
strokes
When hand sewn baggy bag
Was trimmed down to esthetic
book size
Today electrons are
instructed to dance around
To spell out his heart of
thanksgiving
As if it were
yesteryear
When handmade wooden
truck
Was trampled under sister’s
fast feet
When the pebble bouncing off
a bow
Was hard hitting soft
belly
Today microscopic things
that never existed before
Are being crafted in the
laboratory
As if it were
yesteryear
When the shabby
hut
Could not withstand the
seeping rain
When swallow’s mud
nests
Were toppled under the tug
of gravity
When the bee
hives
Were destroyed in child’s
anti-terror play
Today even pet birds and
fish
Huddle safely in their
indoor cage and tank
As if it were
yesteryear
When wild berries and
peaches
Sweet melons and
cucumbers
Were tasted
haphazardly
From uncle A’s to aunt Z’s
gardens
When thrown-away sugar cane
stubs
Were picked up from under
the bridge
Today they are supplied in
ample amount
From super food
stores
As if it were
yesteryear
When dog dung near and
afar
Were collected in foggy
mornings
When firewood and
thicket
Were chopped down in
after-school hours
When seasonal farming
chores
Were labored over again and
again
Today a different kind of
toil
Rhymes with a new tone of
joy
As if it were
yesteryear
When Mom rose up in the
night
Carried a feverish boy to
the hospital
When the dead serious Dad
posed a summer quiz
What the senior high meant
for a country boy
When buckets of rice were
sold at a discount
To play catch with rising
tuition
Today the kid-turned-dad
thinks the same thought
Does the same thing more or
less
Senses a renewed
calling
As if it were
yesteryear
When the voluminous works of
Chairman Mao
Were read and re-read with
reverence and piety
Beside the flickering oil
lamp in the night
When slogans after
slogans
Were blurted out from the
top of the lung
When bulletin board of
criticisms
Was filled with impassioned
array of fighting words
Today the Word of the
Almighty
Has become the meditation
and lifeblood
As if it were
yesteryear
When PLA men were the
heroes
Qiu Shaoyun and Huang
Jiguang and Wang Jie and Lei Feng
When good deeds were
done
To a blind octogenarian
widowed since the Liberation
When aggrandizing
praise
Was further magnified
through loudspeakers
Today the true hero of all
mankind
Has found His rightful place
in the heart
As if it were
yesteryear
When the flame of first love
at first sight
Was kindled ablaze in a
young man’s heart
When the poems-studded love
letters
Helped winning an equally
young and virtuous heart
When the parent-in-laws gave
away their treasured pearl
And helped securing the
certificate of marriage
Today all concerned live
under one roof
Learning to love with the
love from above
As if it were
yesteryear
When a surrealist lad
dreamed a day
When rice would grow from
tall trees
Only to be picked off
freely
When a philosophizing senior
penned down
Declaration of an atheist’s
summary
About life’s past and
present and future
Today the River of life
Flows from God’s
throne
To nurture the tree of life
Gracing the
riverbank
In the eternal
present
(Composed on Oct. 16,
2001)