Goodbye, My Childhood Home Poem by Tricia Mae Chua

Even now I dream of you
In different forms and guises.
Simple joys of aery days—
Rooster crows to greet the morning,
Cool breezes in the afternoon,
A colorful sunset, the quiet of dusk,
And the full moon under a clear night sky.
Each day passing on to the next
Nothing to do but to breathe, live,
Dream and be.

I remember you,
Miles away and forever gone.
My grandfather’s bountiful fruit trees,
The fragrant buds on my grandmother’s
Prized magnolia shrub,
The flowering bougainvillea vines
That crowned your entry gate.
You were a lush cradle of green;
An enclave of retreat from a noisy world.

You had your moods.
I close my eyes and think back
Of carefree warm afternoons spent
Romping in your grassy field.
There too were the stormy nights
Of continuous wind and rain.
But still, the frogs kept singing.

No longer can I return
To your particular place,
But I can always bring place
Into heart,
Treasuring something of you
Each day that I live, breathe,
Dream and be.

Greenbelt, MD
7: 27 AM / October 10,2015