Lao-Tzu in Exile
At last I’ve chosen water as my boat,
Here where jackal’s cries grind down the moon.
The way of heaven is an empty road.
Our names are paper ships: they do not float
For long. Success is a great misfortune.
At last I’ve chosen water as my boat.
The Emperor’s court was an ill-fitting coat;
It was men shouting in a crowded room.
The way of heaven is an empty road
Vanishing in darkness. The leaves of oaks
Can never fall too late or too soon.
At last I’ve chosen water as my boat
For it returns to the sea, as a bell’s note
Fades into the echoing air of noon.
The way of heaven is this empty road
Which I walk. A single strand of smoke;
Stars shimmering above endless dunes.
At last I’ve chosen water as my boat.
The way of heaven is an empty road.
Jay Leeming
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