After Years Poem by john tiong chunghoo

once i have
established
a solid faith
but now i stand
faint hearted
blown by the wind
a statue picking dust
in the open
that would shine
glitter with
just a swish
of your hands
this multi-faceted world
leaving me
floating, sinking,
fainting, laughing,
weeping, crying,
like in the middle of the sea
all the metaphors
that you could seek
of a troubled life
swirling in your mind
in the water
calm facade
stormy swishy mass,
crushing tsunami
the gods, the devils
that trail
my mental world
a sea of anguish, loss
seeking a truth
a needle in the ocean
they call the almighty

inspired by:

After Years

Today, from a distance, I saw you
walking away, and without a sound
the glittering face of a glacier
slid into the sea. An ancient oak
fell in the Cumberlands, holding only
a handful of leaves, and an old woman
scattering corn to her chickens looked up
for an instant. At the other side
of the galaxy, a star thirty-five times
the size of our own sun exploded
and vanished, leaving a small green spot
on the astronomer's retina
as he stood on the great open dome
of my heart with no one to tell.