Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Poetry 2017 | Page 93

The New Tales of Old Shanghai
Heep Yunn School, Leung, Yue Yi Emily - 14
Light the candle,
Turn the handle,
The present and past have their ties,
A story unfolds right before our eyes.
Floral cheongsams and dusty rose powder,
The tinkling sound of jazz growing/blooming louder,
‘Red lanterns’ with embroidered screens,
Westernised lifestyles then had their sheen.
A mix of culture and art,
Scrumptious street food pushed by a cart,
Students and sailors,
Refugees the mischief-makers.
Foreigners roaming the busy streets,
Some from the army some from the fleet,
Peering through the checkered windows,
Nightclubs open for business and shows.
Bustling ports filled with chatter and cheer,
Not a single person in fear,
The alluring promise of easy money,
Drew in bees looking for honey.
But little did one know of the sorrow,
With the country at stake many fought like there was no tomorrow,
‘Golden lotuses’ created through pain,
The agony one did contain.
A transparent veil shielding the darkness,
A false demeanor covering the starkness,
The shows put on outside of theatres,
The truth sugarcoated from many.
Treason committed and political fails,
Lead to people's forgotten wails,
Torture and crime led to tragic loss,
Ghosts and unsolved riddles interrupt one's peaceful doss.