by Bobby Ma
Art by Hedy Zhou
Issue: Mirage (Summer 2014)
War rages.
Dark thoughts form.
Evil corrupts all.
Above,
a storm looms,
brought forth by the black of the Earth.
Wickedness did not notice.
But the dove escaped with the blameless man
into the cypress cage.
Splashes battered the tired wet logs,
there was no mercy for the outside.
Days and days drift by.
When would the dove bask
in the warm sun again?
A blinding light poured in.
The dove flew outside above a sea.
Who knows what remains below?
With nowhere to keep its feet dry,
the dove retreated back into the cage.
Again, the dove set out
confronting the ocean once more.
This time, there was an olive leaf.
Maybe peace can finally reside,
underneath.
Alas, the dove went, and did not return.
Behind, the man stepped out,
onto the cleansed ground,
into an again-pure world.