There was a contest
Once
For the most faithful representation
Of yellow loong,
(Or the Chinese dragon)

In England

An inflated Satan
Or was it Sua proper
Came to squat among
words

Then stroke by stroke, again
It rose right
Upon
Each slate of white

Mind

This poem is inspired by my friend Zhijian Tao’s published dissertation Drawing the Dragon: Western European Reinvention of China (New York: Peter Lang, 2008).