The river along the route
Of the heart, close to
The most recent feeling, overflows
At each bloody corner

Dozens of silver-coded fishes swim
Between waves, with God’s messages
And His reasoning, dozens of scenarios

I wonder now if it is the feelings
That define the pattern of your thought
The fish swim. Their tails hidden.

The river meanders around the pinpoint
Of time, the raindrops fall swiftly to
The surfaces. The fishes’ water-pressed
Scales reflect upwards, like a broken mirror

Yuan Changming, 8-time Pushcart nominee and author of five chapbooks, grew up in rural China, started to learn English at 19, and published monographs on translation before moving to Canada. With a PhD in English, Yuan currently edits Poetry Pacific with Allen Qing Yuan in Vancouver, and has poetry appearing in Best Canadian Poetry, BestNewPoemsOnline, Cincinnati Review, Threepenny Review and 1089 others across 37 countries.