By Kasangailiu Kahmei
Light and green
Eyes closed, and I fly about in great delight
Fruits in shades of green, red and yellow
Sunlight glistens on raindrops of leaves
Birds, too, revel in great happiness
The white clouds, the blue sky
I love these diverse designs and patterns above
Ahh, the wildflowers, the flowers
Sweet-scented tiny red lily beside the water tank
I wish my heart were as sweet as her scent
Sadly she is seldom seen these days
I know her as lily
She resembles freesia; she could be freesia
Vibrant red flowers, with long, smooth, grass-like leaves
I measure her as the epitome of grace
It’s a fantasy to lie beneath the shade of trees
But the buzzing, creeping, crawling creatures stir my anxiety
Yet, I cannot deny the romance felt under the trees
The comfort of a fire when it rains
The scent of the earth
Roasted corn aromas in the rainy season
The thunder and the wind
The cosiness of being inside the house
The warmth of red tea
The sounds of loved ones
Chickens chattering every morning and evening
The quiet of a hot summer afternoon
Suddenly, the lonely, boring rooster crows
This rooster, I adore when he accidentally lays an egg
Yet I remain clueless about this tiny, enchanting egg
He better pops out a shiny silvery egg someday
When the field turns yellow
The warm, pleasant wind lightly moves the sweet-scented paddy
Imagine standing in the midst of the field among the first fruits
Birds whose names I do not know build their nests among the stalks
I love searching for them, hoping to find one
By the field, the brook lies still
The water glitters in the hot noon sun
Sweat trickles down my mother’s face
There she weeds, singing melodies of her youthful days
I know the bees want to listen to us chatter
As memories bloom in our golden afternoon.