Ashes of War by Yucheng Tao
- Yucheng Tao
- Oct 19
- 1 min read
Ashes are another form of tears,
after crying, after losing a homeland.
I burn paper money
for the ancestors.
They might be dancing
in an unknown world, celebrating
that I still survive
in this cold palce.
They try to vouchsafe blessings
to change my fate—
like an oasis in the desert
where I am found.
Ashes rise — do I wait
for the blessings to grow,
like aloe vera?
Ashes rise. Tiny flames
lick our faces.
I pray to my departed loved ones,
begging to escape this fire—
a cruel revelation.
When I stand in the ruins
of a broken battlefield,
pain becomes
the only real world for me.
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