Location location

Beidang Road

Luxuriously fancy, ten miles of grand foreign shopping
Stone-paved wide flat-even road named Petain
Green trees, red walls hangout happy clubs
Dark-green ivy, jade-color shingled gospel houses
Signs turn sideways, horizontal words
People's language ee-ya-sounds, upside-down voice
This Zhina truly is Chinese territory
But could it be that I am in France?

This was the French Quarter's most modern road. Both sides of the street had residential and commercial buildings. All the architecture was in the most fashionable style and Western. Having grown up in a rural area, when I saw it I was so impressed; such a startling contrast to my roots.

Notes:
- most roads were dirt, unpaved, and bumpy
- a gospel house is a church
- signs in China are vertical; horizontal has a double meaning of ruthless (lying vs upright)
- Beidang is a homophone for a French person, a street in the French Concession in Shanghai. It is now called Hengshan Lu.

1985 before mid-autumn festival. My church sister had a dinner party to bid farewell to another sister Yao. I wrote three poems to bid her goodbye.

1.
Mid-autumn upon us, farewell table set
Close sisters sung poems for several years
From now on, this literary altar will see no more generations
Every holiday, I'll think on our friendship multiplied

2. 
Return home, lo, happy to enjoy your family
Ought to sing more in your home and garden
Spring flowers, autumn moon form a pleasant phrase
Far-off, send new poems, a neighborly consolation

3.
Every year we plan to celebrate together
Tonight's moonlight looks rather shy
I was known for my sad emotional goodbyes
Disdain this glass of wine and talk of departure

On mid-autumn festival, Miss Ying, Miss Ming, Miss Jun (my grandma) wrote this together.

Reply to brother-in-law

In reply to my younger sister's husband Xien Zhang's letter

Your letter arrived, I opened it, and read it as a poem
Writing back, as I please, talking about old times
Made me suddenly remember what happened in the provinces of Ching & Gui
Broken-hearted difficulties and sadness endured together

We had no happy days there
Secretly you left without saying anything to me
By the time I found, you had already departed
In my heart, so sour, praying for your safe journey

Fortunately, my older brother was there in my place
Thirty years have past to the turning point of fate
I'm thankful to heaven for protecting you
Hitting rock bottom, at the end, goodness follows 

Heaven destined us to face this wretched world
Fleeing war, we headed westward
Renting in a different territory, nothing we can do
As age grows older, makes things sadder

At leisure, strange music, I'm homesick
What day can we return to our hometown?
I don't expect when drink to our hearts content
Today we are blessed to meet in this other place

We are all sojourners at the ends of the earth
You and I both at our old age depend on our children
Then we'll taste happiness with limit
"Does this nonsense make you laugh?"

Your sister Jun, 
I'm writing in reply to your letter, and send greetings to both of you

Looking up, looking back

1982 mid-autumn festival - Sister Xu and I went to Grandma Cho's for dinner and to look at the moon. In the deep of the night, the three of us walked in the yard; playing, talking, and eating. Even though we are in a foreign country, we got together for this festival. Grandma Xu was inspired and composed a poem, and invited me to compose lines to match it.

Without cause, a bright essence shadow in the middle of the sky
Super brilliant horizon, infinite thoughts
Four walls, music and singing heightens our imminent departure
Where is my old country, bright moonlight?

Noble essence, high up, hangs in the empty sky
Strolling along, step by step, our interests are the same
Chatting about the old country, remembering past traditions
I can't bear to look back, bright moonlight

Several times life changes, damages of war
Turmoil quiets, realize the emptiness of pursing a colorful life
Escaped from Qing dynasty, meet together in this paradise
Each of us, looking at the moon, meanings not the same

- A famous poem written by exiled, dethroned emperor Li Yu says, "I can't bear to look back at my old country in the bright moonlight." It was common practice to use allusions, as your words could be used against you. 
- Qing alludes to wartime