THE GLASS SHOP by Cao Shu

THE GLASS SHOP

by Cao Shu

You let glass pick up the light,

it has graced you with a surface.

A flattened body, bleeding from the corner of the mouth,

a fallen glass, chipped, shining.

You worked here in his shop for 10 years,

and in this foreign city,

he also moved from a windowless place

to a high-rise with floor-to-ceiling glass.

Each time I pass Nanxin East Road,

I can see the fourth-floor window from far away,

peach and clouds reflected on the shimmering glass,

but when he fought with his sobbing widow,

it was glass crashing, shattering into pieces of daggers.

About the poet:

Cao Shu, whose real name is Tang Juliang, is from Hunan Province. He graduated from Xiangtan University in 1985. He has engaged in scientific research, management and real estate development. His works have been published in journals including Poetry Periodical October, Journal of Selected Poems, Poetry Construction, Guangxi Literature and Literatures. He received the Nomination Award of the 20th Rougang Poetry Prize in 2012. In 2013, he won the First International Chinese Poetry Prize and the Contemporary Neo‑Realism Poetry Prize. He is the author of poetry collections such as Life Sketches, Spoon Pond, Reconstruction of Mawangdui and Longevity Stele.