My Last Paper Boat

I wish I knew

The last paper boat that I released

In the meandering rain water

Dripping from the thatched roof

At our ancestral home

Was snatching my bountiful innocence,

Far, far away from me.

I wish I knew

The last sand castle that I built

After an hour-long battle

Against the dwarf waves

On the sandy shore of my village river

Was locking up, forever,

My guileless simplicity,

Pushing it into oblivion.

I wish I knew

The last kite that I flew

From my neighbour's rooftop

Higher up in the sky

Was carrying the last chunk

Of my pristine childhood

Tied tight to the string of Time!

Little did my poor soul realize then -

The higher it soared,

The more I ceased to be a child.