Yangtze Raft

I sit staring out the window

Looking at the rain pounding down 

Like a thousand hammers 
I sigh and close my eyes
And think of the lush Chinese floodplain
The place my mother was born
The clear blue Yangtze River calls my name
So, I hop on my wooden raft
And float away in my dreams
Escaping my dreary life once and for all

In the green highland forests
Giant pandas frolic 
Among stately groves of bamboo
I marvel at the large adults
Playing like children
And eating to their heart’s content

Later, as I float down the river
Curious moving rocks catch my eye
Upon getting closer to them
I notice that they are salamanders
Swimming around lazily
They fill me with a sense of peace
As the hot sun warms my back

Next, I approach some farmers
Harvesting orange groves
The serenity surrounds me
Like an ocean
How the air doesn’t quaver 
With the sound of a million cars
As it does in the Chinese cities
I take a moment here to relax
To nap in the golden afternoon sunshine

Finally, I finish my journey
As I float back to reality
The sun no longer shines
Fish no longer dart around me
The loud honking of a car
Pierces the cold, gray air
Yet, no matter what life is like 
I will always hold the Yangtze
In my dreams

-- source: https://www.wrs.com.sg/en/river-safari/animals-and-zones/yangtze-river…