For sixth former Frank Qi, these words speak of in idioms. when he asks me in return, i tell him that i remember home growing up between two cultures. falling like rain on a bruised London afternoon. in the back of a Wetherspoons, my sister What began in mid-air( flying between China tells me home is shaped like a plastic bag. she tells me home and England) ended by propelling Frank into the is minding the gaps, home is the Bakerloo line, northbound, Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award Top Fifteen. with two stops to go. home is how my lips yield when i grieve that i will never belong. i ask my mother where home is and she tells me it is the ache sewn into the strokes of my name. and if i pick out the stitching with my fingernails and find again where i began, home is somewhere between the seats of this empty plane. 6600 poets from 119 nations entered this prestigious competition in the year Frank floated to the top.
Hometown Eulogy
i ask my father where home is and he tells me it is Jinan, the city of springs. here, April sheen frames the waterlily bulbs like a gold filament painting. the sky stays persimmon-coloured after midnight. south of the river, i grow up wrapped in a red flag. the fabric stiffens my tongue and teaches me to speak
For sixth former Frank Qi, these words speak of in idioms. when he asks me in return, i tell him that i remember home growing up between two cultures. falling like rain on a bruised London afternoon. in the back of a Wetherspoons, my sister What began in mid-air( flying between China tells me home is shaped like a plastic bag. she tells me home and England) ended by propelling Frank into the is minding the gaps, home is the Bakerloo line, northbound, Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award Top Fifteen. with two stops to go. home is how my lips yield when i grieve that i will never belong. i ask my mother where home is and she tells me it is the ache sewn into the strokes of my name. and if i pick out the stitching with my fingernails and find again where i began, home is somewhere between the seats of this empty plane. 6600 poets from 119 nations entered this prestigious competition in the year Frank floated to the top.