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Pilgrimage to a sakura
In Japan, people make a Spring pilgrimage
They go to pay homage to cherry blossoms
When the earth nods its head
When the sun warms its forehead
It causes bare trees to burst into bloom
There a hundreds of dresses in regalia
There are pink chima jeogari dancing
There are white áo dài shimmering
There are lemon petticoats inviting
Plundered by industrious bees
Till a tree is pregnant hundreds over
Blossoms lasting just ten days
Embryos fed by baby green solar panels
Not like summer’s s serious green
Not like fall’s wizened crimson leaves
Do not disturb magnolias gestating
Ahead of this year’s spring equinox
Cherry blossoms care not cruel time
They let winds strip off their gown
Her áo dài ripped become confetti
Her chima jeogari torn by progress
Her lemon petticoat tossed is swept up
For a ticker tape parade on any sidewalk
A pilgrimage to Spring is easy
You don't need faith to behold
Come before fruits cry for her dress
Find a tree to walk around
As Muslims do around the Kaaba in Mecca
You don’t have to be in Tokyo to behold
The divine in a falling twirling petal
Whirling Dervish careless of the audience
They dance for a week and are gone
Renewal and impermanence in chiffon
I await next year's Spring collection
Dismissing summer on the runway
Cherry blossoms also means missing
** Chima jeogori, the traditional outfit for Korean women
** Áo dài, the traditional attire of Vietnamese women
Copyright ©
Triny Xiang
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