The Jade Mountain/From the City-Tower of Liu-chou
FROM THE CITY-TOWER OF LIU-CHOU
To My Four Fellow-Officials
At Chang, Ting, Fêng, and Lien Districts
At this lofty tower where the town ends, wilderness begins;
And our longing has as far to go as the ocean or the sky . . .
Hibiscus-flowers by the moat heave in a sudden wind,
And vines along the wall are whipped with slanting rain.
Nothing to see for three hundred miles but a blur of woods and mountain—
And the river's nine loops, twisting in our bowels. . . .
This is where they have sent us, this land of tattooed people—
And not even letters, to keep us in touch with home.
And our longing has as far to go as the ocean or the sky . . .
Hibiscus-flowers by the moat heave in a sudden wind,
And vines along the wall are whipped with slanting rain.
Nothing to see for three hundred miles but a blur of woods and mountain—
And the river's nine loops, twisting in our bowels. . . .
This is where they have sent us, this land of tattooed people—
And not even letters, to keep us in touch with home.
(55)