月亮花
David Chen
Note: Flowers have been used to symbolize various human experiences. Be it a rose’s romance or a lily’s purity, humans and flowers have long since been intertwined in our lives. Of the flowers that represent love, the moonflower is unique for its meaning of familial love, and for its reminiscence of my father and the tale of the moon goddess, Chang’e. The moonflower’s other meanings—nighttime childhood remembrance and growth—also evoke childlike wonder and dreams of the past. 月亮花 explores the purest form of love I can recall—between parent and child, between father and son—and the growth I’ve had since boyhood.
1. 爸爸 (bà bà); father
2. 嫦娥 (cháng é); Chang’e, the moon goddess
2. 月亮花 (yuè liàng huà); literally, moon flower; a moonflower
3. 月亮的花 (yuè liàng de huà); the moon’s flower
i. 2004
爸爸1 shovels a spoonful of persimmon into his mouth / bites / juice drips down his chin
& his fingers / rip into tangerines
the soil spoils gold / & baba stares cold
嫦娥2 blesses baba / sprinkles moonflower pollen / & watches it fall
under moonglow, baba plants a 月亮花3 / waters it with the moon goddess’ tears
soon, it will be his turn
feather flight / fragile / fragrant & flippant
the windchime clatters against itself / singing 嫦娥’s song
the petals dance
& i pray that she’ll dance with me / someday
moon’s flower blooms / & i am baba’s child
baba borrows the moon goddess’ cloak
tomorrow, the sun will rise / & set again
ii. 2022
爸爸 stains my lips with persimmon juice / & i wonder what happened
why honey bees suck sweet nectar from baba’s moonflowers / & wander off
broken / bruised / bloodied / beautiful / find gold in dark soil
baba peels me a mandarin / speaks mandarin / sweet like mandarin / cries like mandarin
the moon goddess’ hand imprints itself on baba’s skull / & crushes
baba’s 月亮花 wilts / tethered to her tears
the wind chimes / again & again
why is she not sad?
plume & quill / fight & twirl / in breeze & the moon goddess’s breath
月亮的花4 still blooms at night / silent /
autumn winds are always cold under the moonglow
ba builds a mound around the decaying moonflower / & sobs
ba buries sorrows / tomorrow
i can’t help him / why does he cry
has he ever cried for me / like this?
i am still ba’s child
爸 / don’t worry / i’ll still be here when 月亮的花 withers?
1. 爸爸 (bà bà); father
2. 嫦娥 (cháng é); Chang’e, the moon goddess
2. 月亮花 (yuè liàng huà); literally, moon flower; a moonflower
3. 月亮的花 (yuè liàng de huà); the moon’s flower
i. 2004
爸爸1 shovels a spoonful of persimmon into his mouth / bites / juice drips down his chin
& his fingers / rip into tangerines
the soil spoils gold / & baba stares cold
嫦娥2 blesses baba / sprinkles moonflower pollen / & watches it fall
under moonglow, baba plants a 月亮花3 / waters it with the moon goddess’ tears
soon, it will be his turn
feather flight / fragile / fragrant & flippant
the windchime clatters against itself / singing 嫦娥’s song
the petals dance
& i pray that she’ll dance with me / someday
moon’s flower blooms / & i am baba’s child
baba borrows the moon goddess’ cloak
tomorrow, the sun will rise / & set again
ii. 2022
爸爸 stains my lips with persimmon juice / & i wonder what happened
why honey bees suck sweet nectar from baba’s moonflowers / & wander off
broken / bruised / bloodied / beautiful / find gold in dark soil
baba peels me a mandarin / speaks mandarin / sweet like mandarin / cries like mandarin
the moon goddess’ hand imprints itself on baba’s skull / & crushes
baba’s 月亮花 wilts / tethered to her tears
the wind chimes / again & again
why is she not sad?
plume & quill / fight & twirl / in breeze & the moon goddess’s breath
月亮的花4 still blooms at night / silent /
autumn winds are always cold under the moonglow
ba builds a mound around the decaying moonflower / & sobs
ba buries sorrows / tomorrow
i can’t help him / why does he cry
has he ever cried for me / like this?
i am still ba’s child
爸 / don’t worry / i’ll still be here when 月亮的花 withers?
David Chen is a Chinese-American writer from Minnesota. His work has been recognized by Novelly, the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards, and YoungArts, and is in or forthcoming at Ripple Lit, Kissing Dynamite, and elsewhere. He is also a co-EiC of Aster Lit (@LitAster on Twitter and @aster.lit on Instagram), and you can find him at @davidsongchen on both Twitter and Instagram.