Six years ago: Smiling shyly,
You walked towards me and said,
“I am so fond of you,
How do you feel?”
Five years ago: Beaming, gleaming,
I floated towards you in long white wedding gown.
You said, “You have a strong temper, while I have a quiet temperament;
I will take care of you always.”
Four years ago: Love and glistening tears in your eyes,
You cradled me tenderly in the Labour Room and said,
“Ah, you suffered such pain in the birth of our daughter.
From now on, I will happily look after all the housework.”
Three years ago: Two kilos of brown liquid were pumped from your lungs!
Clumsy and heavy, seven months pregnant, I stole into the Emergency Ward,
You squeezed out a faint smile: “A disgrace for a strong young man like me
To take a hospital bed away from the weak and the elderly.”
Two years ago: Lung cancer. Final stage!
I wept. Hugging tight our three-month old son, I was frightened and lost.
With your arm around my shoulders and stroking me tenderly, you comforted me,
“With no surgery, the ordeal will be much easier.”
One year ago: Cancer tumours spread mercilessly to your brain.
You laughed softly,
“At last you have medical evidence to show
Your husband is really a mental defect!”
Now, lying here, you do not even look at me.
I exhausted all my strength, looking for signs of hope,
Searching for traces of a miracle,
And I finally found the ultimate limit of human power.
I murmured in your ear: “My darling, hold on to your Faith,
hold tight to Christ’s Hands.
Go trustingly forward, into Paradise and Light.
There, there will be no cancer, no pain, only a brand-new you –
A beautiful young man, smiling shyly, in the soft breeze.”
Six years is too short.
Are we not meant to be holding hands till we both grow grey
Surely, you are not willing to leave me.
But, submit. God’s holy plan is a mystery.
From Paradise, look down with love on your wife and children.
Keep us safe while we wait in unfailing Faith
Till we are together once again
For all Eternity.
About the Author: Judy Li
Translated from the original Chinese by Rose Goodstadt