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Bird of Li
by huang via jill - Inverse Times Friday, Jul 20 2018, 9:44am
international / poetry / post

it is said that in the mountains of Li
there is a bird that extends its wingspan
beyond the known and unknown

this bird is called by those that have
been enveloped by its wings
and brought to its warm heart,
the bird of paradise,
though few have seen its marvels
hidden from the profane by the visual
distortions produced by the mists of Li

many have searched in vain for this bird
climbing this way and that, only to find
their death from falls into the bottomless
gorges of Li

yet a million spans farther in lands unknown
a curious feather is seen at times
behind the mountains and the sea,
this land is my home as i was produced
by its many strange and curious wonders
that invert when feigning support
that progress when appearing to reverse
that push tides above the peaks
and settle quietly into the still centre of storms

i am unable to leave this land as a fish is unable to live
out of water
or a flying creature is drowned under water
the medium in which i exist only accommodates
the species it produces

and so one day i decided to venture past the clouds
to discover that strange anomalous form that appears
as a feather between the mists

and so at a juncture between seen and unseen
i heard a song that transfixed my soul
and found to my surprise
the bird of paradise nestled between
the known and unknown
and when it noticed i had discovered it
i found myself swept onto its back
by the crest feather that appears and disappears

with me on its back it lifted into the heavens
and flew past a multitude of lands, seas
and spectacles
to arrive in the midst of the mysterious
mountains of Li
where it left me to descend into
into the world of men

https://inversetimes.hopto.org/news/story-136.html

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