A visual representation of "City" by Louise Ho
MAI Diwen
Sha Tin Government Secondary School
My painting depicts a scene of the poem titled ‘City’ written by Louise Ho.
Hong Kong has a well-developed transportation network,
heavy traffic with lots of cars on the road.
In peak hours, many people would rush and never find time to take a look at the city
or pay attention to people who need care around them.
The poem features a street-sleeper entirely unto himself under the neon lights,
not affected by the fast pace of Hong Kong or noticed by the busy passers-by.
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.