The Black Box

The truck pulled up at the crack of dawn

On a Sunday morn in June,

I could hear the men unloading from

The darkness of my room,

‘What a strange time to deliver,’ I thought,

As I rose, pulled on my socks,

For there on the porch outside I found

They’d left a big black box.

 

There wasn’t a mark on this gleaming box

But the scrawl of my own address,

Nothing to say who it was from

Just a silent emptiness,

I left it there til the sun came up

Then I pulled it through the door,

And there in a tiny script was writ

The legend, ‘from Zhongguo’. *

 

Why would the Chinese send a box,

I hadn’t been there for years,

Maybe the Tong I’d tangled with

Back then, for black was a curse.

I looked for a way to open it

But there wasn’t a flap or seam,

It wasn’t tin and it wasn’t steel

But a substance in-between.

 

I dragged it out in the garden then,

Outside of the door, at back,

And thought that I would figure it out,

Then the box began to crack.

It heated up in the morning sun

And began to peel away,

Opening up the inside to

Be seen by the light of day.

 

And there inside was a giant egg,

The biggest I’d ever seen,

All sorts of curious markings on

The shell, in Mandarin.

I went inside and I locked the door

And I sat myself to think,

Why would they send a giant egg?

My mind was on the blink!

 

It only took a couple of hours

In the sun, that day in June,

And the shell began to break apart,

To hatch in the afternoon,

And a thing crawled out of that empty shell

That I never thought I’d see,

A tiny Chinese Dragon hatched

Came out, was suddenly free!

 

I couldn’t believe how fast it grew

As it fluttered out its wings,

It ate the cat and my bowler hat

And a host of other things,

Then it wandered down to the goldfish pool

Slid in, and began to swim,

There isn’t a single goldfish left

And the pool is sizzling.

 

Its head comes up and it gives a roar

And it sets the reeds on fire,

The flame is almost ten feet long

And my future’s looking dire.

Will someone get in touch with the zoo

They can have the beast for free,

Oh no! It’s wandering up the path,

No doubt, it’s looking for me!

 

David Lewis Paget

 

*Zhongguo - pron. Jong gwar - China

Reviews

[Devanshu Rajput]

Oh! A poor you. I am really feeling very sorry for you. Lol!

Well, Chinese people are not only intelligent but also are cunning. In my view you should send back a more fierce animal(If the dragon spares you)!

A nice poem, the tale was incredble.

Devanshu

[TPK Stories]

Very exciting ending...well written David.

[MomzillaNC]

Wandering up the path to reek Tong vengeance? Then what? LOL This is great! Hugely entertaining!

[R Smith]

haha sorry for laughing David hope your beard's not too singed but what a great story, a dragon from China now that's a class way to exact revenge, better than a horse's head anyday, your work grows ever more wondrous and i hope that dragon stays over there in Aus' with you lol

[Avinash]

What a terrible gift David. Hope you survived the Dragon and its playful fury. Honestly speaking such benign gifts should be immediately sent back to the place from where it has come. But as they say strange things happen and they only make memories. One of your unforgettable ones.

[andrew mitchell]

lol David how you tease the reader as you weave your tale of magic. Bloody good write

[Lyndy]

I love this poem, haha. :D A live dragon from China. It's amazing. :D

[ANTO]

I saw the coolest chinese dragon with it gold and greens and finery motoring up the path to have a DLP sandwich (hold the Miracle whip).
This is a delight David. The tension builds excellently and your descriptive powers are beyond reproach. The wit abounds - reminding me of 'Blondie's song rapture wherein the man from Mars eats everything.
And I learned a Chinese word - and the proper pronounciation too, class.
Where else would you get it ??
Thank you David - for all.
:))

[Marie]

I don't know what you did to piss off the Tong, but it must have been terrible. No zoo is gong to touch this thing. Suggest you go to your friendly neighborhood Chinese pharmacy and get some Dragon-Repel...

[Jane Winters Rogers]

Hahaha! Oh how I enjoyed reading your poem, I thought this poem was playful, fun for you to write!
What a fabulous imagination.you are so delightful, and "pop up" everywhere what an adventure this one
Was. Thank you for sharing your talent with us, you are a great poet. Now you have created a Chinese
Dragon that not only breathes fire but it's roaming!! Quick call the zoo someone, save our poet! Lol!