A Chinese Marriage
You took your place on a solid armchair
Amused with the attention you commanded
You told beautiful stories, great tales
Of ancient Chinese marriages and their glory
You spoke of what brides must endure
In the old culture of China
Where a new wife must be silently obscure
You were the matriarch Empress
I was a second class citizen
In this Forbidden City you created
I was not the Chinese wife you wanted
I had too much fire within my bosom
My passions burned too fiercely against
The kind of justice you dispensed
You wanted me to bow in kowtows
But my knees would not bend
I was not the Chinese wife you wanted
I was raw, untamed, untended
But the Empress' son saw through
The wildness of my spirit
He saw a Phoenix bride, a precious jewel
The bride he always wanted
Copyright © Nancy Lim | Year Posted 2005
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