Goodbye Shandong

Goodbye Shandong

Goodbye, Shandong.
  
You vibrant province of
  
Princely pagodas and aged sages.
  
  
 Where cotton, corn, peanuts, fruit,
  
Feathers abound.
  
  
 Of carved mountains and grinning lions,
  
Where rain falls at night,
  
In just the right measures.
  
  
 Oh, how I’ll miss the sandy shores of Rizhao;
  
The vibrant bathers and beached ships;
  
The peddlers and fishermen’s inns/houses/hotel.
  
  
 Qufu schools and Qufu town,
  
Confucious, Mount Tai, and the Juxian church;
  
  
 The myriad temples and princely pagodas;
  
Waning springs, rock gardens, and layered fields;
  
  
 But missed most of all are the people,
  
The ever-present smiles and friendly facades,
  
Whose kindness continues with curious abandon.
  
  
 Where else can one buy a pen and gather a crowd?
  
Where else is help just a vocal stumble away?
  
  
  
Appreciation is paramount here,
  
And well-done work rewarded with free-flowing fountains of gracious gratitude.
  
  
  
Goodbye Shandong from the physical,
  
But the Spirit ever remains.

Douglas Noel