by Kelly Zen-Yie Tsai
no, our people are not magical
nor do we work extraordinarily
harder than anybody else
jackie chan did fail out
of primary school, spent
his childhood meditating
back flip to foot to back flip,
a boy growing into man
in constant motion
no, we tend not to learn it
in our families
but the steps of chiang kai shek
memorial are lined each morning
with hundreds of grey haired supplicants
to tiao wu, their aging joints turning
beneath the grey of sky and sun
it is not the most important part
of our culture
but who wouldn’t fall in love
with the helix of bruce lee’s waist,
muscles firm and corrugated
like the rows of rooftop tiles
bearing the lightness of rain
and the lightning of his touch
Kelly Zen-Yie Tsai/s website is Yellowgurl
YELLOWGURL EVENTS MAY 09- For details, check out: Events