Please visit the bookstore!
Bamboo Shoots Submission for Year of the Dragon
Nasty Kids
Tomorrow Papa comes home
from deployment.
We will string many lei to welcome him.
With flowers from ownerless trees in AMR Crater.
We climb higher for bigger blossoms.
My eyes close against the stinging
milk of falling plumerias.
Cut off a small branch.
Someone shouts.
“Get out of that tree…nasty kids!
You people
always picking the flowers,
now you’re taking a whole branch?!”
Doesn’t he understand…
Papa wears the same uniform as him?
We take and give,
and only cut the branch to plant?
“Leave before I call the MP’s!
You don’t belong here.”
But, we do belong…
We do.
YOU PICK THOSE FLOWERS! MAKE YOUR LEI! :') Sorry, got all excited just now lol
Btw, I love this line:
My eyes close against the stinging
milk of falling plumerias.
What a great image.
lol… thanks Kristel! This really did happen so yeah. There's so much more I wanted to convey, but 100 words is tough. 🙂 It's fun too though.
I have to agree with Kristel, a really beautiful image. I also appreciate 'we take and give', the phrasing has a wonderful rhythm to it.