MOON SILK

Dear mother in China—
Standing in the shadow of our light,
do you
look at the round moon and wonder
about the thread of life that you began to spin:
the girl who slept
curled quiet and safe in your body
bone and blood and flesh and soul,
the little dark eyes
the tiny ears, the waft of black hair.
Where is the thread of her life now,
you wonder as the night flows by underneath you:
Is she happy?
Is she alive?

Walking through the shadow of your loss
the girl you bore
glows, shines,
sleeps in the moonlight sifting
through lace curtains.
She calls out HI to strangers,
grins with joy when they turn to see her.
Beautiful as a dragonfly, she
is luminous with her life.
Our lives are luminous with her.
The thread you started spinning is still strong,
a silk strand that gathers moonlight
and makes it wise.
We help her spin it now.
She will follow it out of our sight
too.

Tina Tau, 1999