Orange Sky

I gave it up to wander
In a dark and ancient land,
With foreign tongue, like aqualung
In an ocean made of sand.

How long I lived in blindness
Of spirit, heart, and soul.
I felt the world, and truth unfurled,
Cold and black as coal.

The red lights in the alley
Cast dark shadows on the wall,
Of women fair, sans moral care,
Waiting for a call.

I saw the China stars but once,
For twice, I would have died.
But I learned to love the quilt above,
The magic orange sky.

On moonless nights I felt the cool
Of wind across the fields.
The rice, it danced, and me entranced
With motions most surreal.

The scorching sun of summers gone,
And stinging acid rain
Was brightness mild, not wat’ry wild
‘Mid sleepless nights of pain.

Through dressings on a shattered heart
My haggard spirit sighed,
And dried the tears I shed two years.
I love the orange sky.

I saw the China stars but once,
For twice, I would have died.
But I learned to love the quilt above,
The magic orange sky.