sounds like a pictogram
'tis shit written in Chinese
culture Occidental, I gather?

yes, it sounds reasonable or vulgar?
depends on your perspective & your angle
whether you're a layman or a scholar

how was this word derived & anchored?
'tis a riddle unsolved, a life-time puzzle
I often wonder:
perhaps, all things nice, spice or sugar
will turn sour
if you keep a little longer
than the duration normal

remember, I first learned this word
when I was tender & little
I was shocked, by all its components & radicals

I asked,
how did a Chinese scholar
invent this 3-part radical
in such a manner?

I asked,
how could a Chinese scholar
supposed to be full of manners
be so ungrateful & irrational?

the answer is: neither
rather, it is just
a matter of fact, well put together

however
until today, my mind still puzzles
I still don't understand
just how, a word like this
doesn't whither!?

as I write this
my eyes twinkle:
rice on top
paddy field in the center
together
'tis the shit you've just gathered?  

Lin Hsin Hsin
February 19, 1991