Murasaki Shikibu, <br />Poet and novelist, <br />Lady- in-Waiting <br />To Empress Shoshi, <br />Your classic story, <br />The Tale of Genji, <br />Absorbs and enchants. <br /> <br />Oh, <br />My Dear Lady-in-Waiting, <br />How I would like <br />To discuss with you <br />your magnum opus. <br /> <br />Alas, no address, <br />No phone, <br />Not even an email. <br /> <br />And, besides, you wrote <br />Your riveting tale <br />A thousand years ago, <br />In a faraway island, <br />Yonder on Honshu, <br />In the Land of the Rising Sun, <br />Where the snow-capped <br />Mount Fuji admires <br />Its majestic reflection <br />In Lake Yamanaka. <br /> <br />Now a wild carnation <br />And a new wisteria <br />Under a blue sky build <br />An ethereal bridge <br />Of the mind <br />In the garden. <br /> <br />The sound of flute <br />Says farewell <br />To a drifting boat <br />On the river.<br /><br />Paul Hartal<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/carnation-bridge-with-a-missed-conversation/
