Ode To Birth Poem by john tiong chunghoo

the woman with a baby
inside her has been
weaving a dream for me
warm and promising as
her full blown womb

a world she has pegged
onto that name, a name that
would bind my heart to hers
for another round of illusionary
experiences cast by the gods

you can do all the crying

in a moment there will be
a full breath blast
shuttling into another star
reverberating another world
cheering it up

cry all your eyes out,
and i will too

in some years' time
perhaps, i would call you uncle
and you would me by my first name

we would laugh together
again for another round
of drinks spiked with things
sweet, bitter, sour, warm and cold