Anonymous poem honors Huang Xiang
by Brian Tierney / June 5, 2011 / No comments
On Sat. May 14, City of Asylum/Pittsburgh received an anonymous poem honoring Huang Xiang for daring to touch “dangerous themes” that “earned him the solitude of prison.” Huang was the first persecuted writer to be housed by COA/P.
The unsigned poem testifies to how COA/P has inspired and fostered a creative community in Pittsburgh and beyond.
To a Chinese Poet in Pittsburgh
A Chinese poet has come to Pittsburgh
to live in his house of dreams.
He writes about the moon, thunder,
and the beauty of silence –
such dangerous themes, burdened with metaphors!
No wonder they earned him the solitude of prison
Seven times in China.
Now he embraces us,
His smile a room wide, his heart pulsing on the floor beside us
As he chants, twirls like a tornado and hurls his words
Through the barrier of a strange language
To touch us all.
