YUAN CHANGMING

All Heart Rooted: Lesson One in Chinese Characters

恩: /en/ favour is
                         a reliance on the heart
忌： /ji/ jealousy implies
                                     there being one’s self only in the heart
悲： /bei/ sorrow comes
                                      from the negation of the heart
惑： /huo/ confusion occurs
                                         when there are too many an ‘or’ over the heart
感： /gan/ perception takes place
                                         when an ax breaks something on the heart
忠： /zhong/ loyalty remains
                              as long as the heart is kept right at the center
恥： /chi/ shame is the feel
                         you get when your ear conflicts with your heart
怒: /nu/ anger influxes when slavery
                             rises from above the heart
愁: /chou/ worry thickens as autumn
                               sits high on your heart
闷: /men/ depressed whenever your heart is
                                     shut behind a door
意: /yi/ meaning is defined as
                       a sound over the heart
思: /si/ thought takes place
                      in the field of heart
忘: /wang/ forgetting happens
                     when there’s death on heart
忍： /ren/ to tolerate is to bear a knife
                                right above your heart

YUAN CHANGMING edits Poetry Pacific with Allen Yuan in Vancouver. Credits include Pushcart nominations, chapbooks, and publications in Best of the Best Canadian Poetry and BestNewPoemsOnline, among others.