The Ridge Line, My Final Standing Position Poem by Catherine Yen

Song that loud and clear
Ever been heard in the dream
I have heard its past and future
A flahsing
Becoming mute and vulnerable
Sharp the eagle eyes
Seeing the sun no more

Arawnag,
Once a place of dialogue for nature and tribe
Deep the forgetfulness
Obscure the ancestor's footsteps
The road is black and flat
A heavy tramp
Leaving no footprints any more

Difficult is the mountain to close
But I know it's esoteric
The clear stream
Let me learn the courage in traceability
Fearful the typhoon
Let me know the reverence toward heaven and earth

That pathetic songs
Is a sound of the wind
a sound of the stream
a sound of the waves
Observing the ocean
A slow dance
My steps from the waves wandering its waste sea

The ridge line, my final standing position
The reef along the seaside
Instable as I can stand
The coastline amid the ocean and hill
I can’t see my footprints
Can not find the way home

Walking in the mountain ridges
Floating over the waterline
Leaping my blood and muscle
The only howl of the tribe
Is the voice of a dream un-awakened
Indomitably shuttled the past and present


Arawang: location name of an ancient tribe in Taiwan