A visual representation of "City" by Louise Ho
CHAN Cheuk Yu
Yan Chai Hospital Wong Wha San Secondary School
Although tunnels are the veins of the city, not a lot of people notice them and they are separated from the prosperous city. The confinement of tunnels gives people a sense of oppression and restraint, which reflects the isolation and loneliness in the city. The tunnel is parallel to time and space of the ground, featuring criss-crossing lanes and fly-overs. The left wall has clear footprints and the right wall shows signature high-rise buildings in Hong Kong. All these help present a busy and crowded cityscape, which is in contrast to the quiet makeshift homes of the street-sleepers. In addition, the mesh lines on the left and the barbed wire on the right act as the merciless segregation between the homeless and other city dwellers. All these aim at creating a sense of isolation of their existence from the city, which show their helplessness and emphasise the fact that no one cares about them. There is a passer-by in the tunnel and she represents all of us. If we see a street-sleeper, would we choose to give them a hand or just walk away? With the help of the general public, a more inclusive society will be created. We, together, can make a difference.
City
No fingers claw at the bronze gauze
Of a Hong Kong December dusk,
Only a maze of criss-crossing feet
That enmeshes the city
In a merciless grid.
Between many lanes
Of traffic, the street-sleeper
Carves out his island home.
Or under the thundering fly-over,
Another makes his own peace of mind.
Under the staircase,
By the public lavatory,
A man entirely unto himself
Lifts his hand
And opens his palm.
His digits
Do not rend the air,
They merely touch
As pain does, effortlessly.
Louise Ho
“City” was published in Incense Tree: Collected Poems of Louise Ho by Louise Ho, p.45.
Copyrights © 2009 by Hong Kong University Press. Reprinted by permission of Hong Kong University Press.