As I was biking along the Shenzhen boardwalk, I looked up. The sky was a cool plastic slate that stretched from the west, where the sun blushed behind pearly screens. Around me the sounds of hip hop mixed with the tinkle of bicycle bells, the scent of jasmine and barbecued meat. Along the shore of the South China Sea, huge stones and boulders were neatly piled up like ossified dragon tears. Young mangroves would break through, their leaves cupped as if to gather raindrops. As I sped down the boardwalk the wind called me. I imagined I was trapped in a conch shell, its sounds drowning my beating heart. It plaintively sang in e flat minor, the dramatic key of a Rachmaninoff etude or (the enharmonic equivalent) of a Scriabin prelude, saying, Come on, come on!

chun

f ng guang r n r n d ng xi;d ng xi mò

j ;ji rì jiao hún xún bù dé

mì fáng y kè lèi fang xin

ye yè chàng tiáo biàn xiang shí

nu n i hui chí táo shù xi

gao huán lì gòng táo huán qí

xióng lóng cí fèng y o hé x

xù luàn si fán tian yì mí

zuì q w i yáng ruò chu sh

yìng lián mèng duàn wén cán y ;yù

chóu jiang;jiàng tie w ng juàn shan hú

h i kuò tian kuan mí chù su

yì;yi dài wú qíng y u kuan zh i

chun yan zì bì qiu shuang bái

yán dan bò shí tian bù zhi

yuàn dé;dei;de tian láo su yuan pò

jiá;jia luó;lu wei qiè dan;chán xiao q

xiang ji leng chèn ch ng ch ng pèi

jin rì d ng f ng zì bù shèng

huà;hua zuò y u guang rù xi h i

xià

qián du;gé y lián chóu bù ju n;juàn

hòu táng fang shù yin yin jiàn;xiàn

shí chéng j ng wù lèi huáng quán

yè bàn xíng;háng;xìng láng k ng zhè tán;dàn

líng shàn;shan huàn f ng chang hé tian

qing wéi cuì mù b huí xuán

sh hún jì mò y u bàn wèi

j ;ji yè zhàng hua kai mù mián

guì g ng liú y ng guang nán q

yan xun lán pò qing qing y ;yù

zhí jiào;jiao yín hàn duò huái zh ng

wèi qi n xing f i zhèn;ch n lái qù

zhuó shu qing b hé yì yuán

j ;jì hé shu qing huáng hé hún

an dé;dei;de bó wù q xiang qún

sh u ji yún peng hu tài jun

qiu

yuè làng héng tian tian y shi

liáng chán luò;lào;là