The Journey Itself Is My Home Poem by Chen-ou Liu

A Tanka Prose


The last time I visited my parents in Taipei, I strolled through Da An, an affluent leafy residential district known for its prominent universities and small publishing houses. I spent half an hour in its winding alleyways and couldn’t find the bookstore I had frequented for 20 years. At first, I felt a surge of panic and, moments later, a stabbing pain in my body. The Taipei I had known was gone.


on the wall
an old map of Taipei -
I look outside,
tiers of color lighting up
the Toronto night sky


Note: Taipei is the city of my birth, the capital of Taiwan (formerly known as the Republic of China)