Chinese Day of the Dead
April 4th: Qing Ming Jie 清明节 (Tomb Sweeping Day), where the dead are honored with family trips to tidy up their ancestors’ graves.
Grave Bed
I know death approaches it’s not tragic
my hopes are at peace in a forest of pines
overlooking the ocean from a distance like a pond
afternoon sunlight keeping me mottled company
a man’s time is up and man’s world goes on
I must rest in the middle
passerby say the branches droop
passerby say the branches are growing
1988.1 from Nameless Flowers: Selected Poems of Gu Cheng
From China Books http://www.chinabooks.com/cart/newsletters/newsletter080401.html