Forever Bright ~ Part Two

 Trees fell in the woods.  No official documents.  No recorded history. 

A people's forest axed by a government warping reality, twisting their moments into seeming imagination.  The voices of only a few brave souls remained; the others scorched by incomprehensible fear.  Memories permanently etched into souls unwilling to forgive or forget.  

Tremors of a distant yesterday quaked through Chang Ming; shocking his heart into an abnormal rhythm.  Flashes of Robbed Expectations.  Doctors.  Authorities.  Strangers.  

Crimson Red Shots of His Wife.  Laid in a Hospital Bed.  Naked.  

   Sheets Stained.  Once White.  Surgical Instruments.  Bright Lights.  No Windows.  

                    Her Screams Silenced.      Chang Ming Motionless.  

          Anger Surfaced.       Rage Oppressed.         No Recourse.

The Incessant Crying now only heard by Chang Ming and others like him.

Perspiration trickling down the nape of his neck, his heart raced seemingly breaking out of his chest.  He could not reach her now.  The prison walls imploded; efforts to catch his breath seemed futile.  

The back of his head bleeding from crashing into the wall, he tried to navigate his way back to the present moment.  Tightly he clenched his wrist; burrowing his fingernails deep into his own flesh. He spoke the words “It’s Time” out loud then suddenly remembered his whereabouts.  

Paranoia set in as he heard voices and footsteps outside of his cell. 

He inhaled deeply, choking, as if recovering from drowning.  Chang Ming searched for a melody attempting to temporarily divert from the living nightmare occupying his daily existence.  

Quietly within his mind, he sang the poem “It’s Time” by Zhu Yufu,¹ rocking himself to sleep; wishful that, in sleep, he may find peace until tomorrow's dawn.

              It’s Time

                  by Zhu Yufu

It’s time, people of China! It’s time. The Square belongs to everyone. With your own two feet It's time to head to the Square and make your choice.It’s time, people of China! It’s time. A song belongs to everyone. From your own throat It’s time to voice the song in your heart.It’s time, people of China! It’s time. China belongs to everyone. Of your own will It’s time to choose what China shall be.

To Be Continued…

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¹ Written in 2011, Zhu Yufu was sentenced to seven years in prison by the Chinese government for speaking his heart in the 12 lines contained within the poem, "It's Time."  He is presently serving this prison term; accused of subversion of state authority.    

Forever Bright ~ Part One

Specks of dust danced upon a solitary ray of light penetrating the crack in a thick cinder-block wall.  Alone now, Chang Ming Xiang focused on these specks as he pressed his back into the wall and stretched his legs across the dirt floor.  He knew the light’s natural presence was an oversight by his captors.  Somehow Chang Ming managed to feel privileged for this light’s presence marking time; an hourglass of coarse sand drifting downward since the day of his transfer from the internment camp. 

He attempted to shield his mind from those he left behind.  Fetal-like, Chang Ming pressed his knees deep into his chest; rocking his body back and forth against the wall; the subtle pain of hitting the wall comforting him and reassuring him that he was now only physically alone.  Legions of others existed elsewhere in suppressed whispers.  At once consuming the energy he struggled to conserve, he felt these rocking movements necessary to preserve his state of mind and maintain physical stability. 

Chang Ming’s mind struggled to stifle the moments that led to his current circumstance.      His body tarnished and malnourished, suicide would give him a choice in his death’s protocol.  Yet, he knew that his suicide would be a victory for the enemy.  He was unwilling to relinquish the small gains he and the others had fought for so long. 

To Be Continued…