The Chinaman

Living is like garden.
Only rain make beautiful flowers grow.
Make heart like cup to catch tears, and life full of wonder.
When cup of heart full, many dry gardens waiting.
Of all good things, friends best.
Friends like sunny day.
Sun may go away, storm may come, but sun always come back.
Of all good friends, he best who walk in rain with you.
He say, “Man who walk in rain without clothes, doesn’t get wet coat.”
Then you laugh at rain, and friend laugh with you, and say, “Man whose coat already wet, not mind walking through river.”
Laughing puffs much wind out of man’s chest, making man smaller.
Man with much wind puffed up in chest, much smaller when laughing.
Proud man who laugh much loses pride.
Humble man who makes chest big loses fear.
Silly old Chinese man know much wisdom through being such fool.
Fool knows much because he know nothing.
Knowing nothing, Chinese fool ready to believe anything.
Yet being such great fool, in the end believes nothing.
Chinese fool, being nothing, he ready to be anything.
Friend. Old Chinese man have heart like cup, head like hole in pocket, all thinking fall out, and much laughter fall out of mouth.
Look in my head, you see nothing.
Look in mouth, and all you see is happiness.

Copyright ©2002 Tony Crisp