Hearthstone

It is easy to remember, 
But hard to forget—

The cruel sun lives on
And reminds me without mercy. 
Without warmth. 
Without worth. 
Without all the promises of being alive. 
Only the rough earth, the
Crumbling stage that I walk on. 
It makes me fall—

Stumbling, each step fills me with fatigue. 
I drink the despair and wither
Under this evil sphere, which keeps me alive
As well as a few billion happy people.

A broken edge of a stone, 
A negligible obstacle, 
Harshly, holds my ankle
And stiffen me with its lifeless grip.

I touch the pieces around me, the dry sand, 
The silent tree, and the stone that holds me.

I look down at them, 
It must be hard to be a stone.

Dale Chou
1999-04-20