Paul Tan (b. 1970)
SELECTED POEMS
The Sentry at Mutianyu Speaks to the Astronaut
I watch strange creatures unfurl
with each labored breath
and think of your dragon’s flight,
launched to such fanfare.At the edge of the kingdom,
language is pointless,
even if our lips were not blistered,
our tongues frost-dead.These vats of oil dispatch flames
to the sky. In blazing sequences,
we send stories to the capital.What cosmic language do you see?
Can you see me, nameless sentinel
on this endless line of stones?Are there marauding barbarians
in cold outer space?You and I have linked destinies—
we puncture small holes
in the wintry darkness against
strange winds and shifting stars.We obey the emperor’s bidding,
do not think of earthly rewards;
the festooned laurels
we will save for another life.
Author’s Note: Mutianyu is a stretch of China’s Great Wall, seventy kilometres north-east of Beijing. China launched its second manned space mission into orbit in October 2005.
by Paul Tan
from When the Lights Went Off (2018)
