My ship is set to sail next morn
We are headed around Cape Horn
Can’t say I welcome this trip much
Ten thousand leagues or somewhat such
Liverpool to Shanghai for tea
British Sterling’s the master key
The world loves the Fujian black leaf
Of China’s many kinds it’s chief
From Mandalay to London town
The markets thrive with no let down
We're going to leave tomorrow”
And I have a bit of sorrow
I hate to leave my girl behind
She’ll find another bloke that’s kind.
I’ll not blame her forgetting me
My trip will take a year or three
So it’s heave ho, a way we go
“Haul away, Oh haul away Joe”
Make mine a double mug of rum
It’ll take me through this loathsome glum
Lunar New Year brings blessings bright:
Affluence now cheers our spirits right.
Goodies galore with sure good health:
So much and more with ample wealth.
Time moves most brisk with bounty's range:
We live fine risk as fortunes change.
So much to do as plenty sums:
For me and you with grand outcomes.
The moon aglow this 15th day:
Valentine shows true lover's way.
Chap Goh Mei rhymes that Luna gaze:
Seek to court times in hearty maze.
Chinese New Year brings happy spring:
Here's to good cheer and precious things.
May all our dreams bring happy thoughts:
May love's fond streams bring healthy lots.
Live faith and hope as love seeds grace:
Work your grand scope with cheer you trace.
Leon Enriquez
11 February 2017
Singapore
(Note: 'Chap Goh Mei' means "15th Day" of
the lunar month in Hokkien, a Chinese dialect
with origins in Fujian province in China.)
Looking for the formal definition, structure, and history of this poetry form? Visit the Poetry Dictionary entry below. Then return to explore how PoetrySoup members bring the form to life through their own poems.