Temple of the Emerald Buddha

a toothless shaman
grins at you
as you enter
this holy place

young boy
takes gold leaf
off buddha statue
puts it on
his own face

the man in the mirror
is losing his hair--
pretty soon
he'll be gone too

the emerald buddha
is really made of jade--
it doesn't matter
to the Buddha

the buddhas in Bangkok
are all smiling--
still you say
"Life is suffering"

a serpent
with five heads
all with the
buddha's face

four teenaged girls
with a tape recorder
ask to interview me
for their English class--

one of them asks me:
"Why are you here?"

sitting in the presence
of the buddha
I forget
the four vows

twelve summers ago
when I first visited this temple:
someone else

the buddha holds his arms
outstretched
to stop the sea

a small boy
walks into the temple
sees the buddha
calls out: "Hello!"

twelve years ago
I first saw myself
in the mirror

looking at the green
emerald buddha

looking at me

                                    Bangkok