DRAGON WEIGHT
Dad is still at home
and he says they talked
with police and the principal
and my teacher and they think
it’s probably someone from school …
can we talk later? I have to play soccer
I say, and drop my bag and run out the door
I ride my bike toward Takemura’s
then detour to a convenience store
for a bag of chips so at least
I’ll have something
to pass as a “gift”
Takemura-san’s there
and he motions me in
with his hand even though
his face is scowling
we set up the shōgi board
and when he asks about Cora
I say she’s playing with a friend
even though this might not be true
we start to play and I try
but I can’t focus on the grid
even though his advice
on moves is clear enough
then I catch his words saying
that my mood seems heavy
I’m tired I admit
then after a moment, I add
and I’m kind of hiding out
I catch the word mugicha—barley tea
and following his waving
go into the kitchen
and in the refrigerator find a pitcher
take two cups from a cupboard
and pour us each some chilled tea
I set his cup on the shōgi table
gulp mine down
then realize I have to
pick up the cup
guide the cup
into his hand
he’s shakier
today
I notice he’s watching
waiting for me to speak
so I tell him what happened
with the dragon paperweight
and how I thought my han
members would be protected
if I didn’t turn them in
which would mean that I’d
then be protected by the han
and they’d stop bothering me
but now I think somehow
they’ve been found out
and my plan totally failed
also, I don’t think
the matter is solved at all
just because the dragon
has been returned
Takemura-san then starts right in
telling the old dragon story
but he’s halting, so it’s mostly me
filling in with my mind
where his words are slurred
or me filling in out loud
when he’s stuck for words
it’s the story that I know
from teachers, neighbors, kids
and from Dad who loves local history and legends
the story about the dragon
who was always eating children
snacking on them a few at a time
and the Benten goddess on the island
he fell in love with who persuaded him
to finally stop his destructive munching ways
and about how, after he stopped
feeling badly for all he’d done
he turned himself into a mountain
the place called Dragon’s Mouth
the place right here
where we live
Takemura-san says
(more or less)
you see?
even dragons
can change
hah! I think
maybe in stories I say
I open the bag
and we eat the chips
then I say good-bye
promising to bring Cora
with me next time
but when I step outside
when I close the gate
to Takemura’s house
I see that my bike
is not by the river wall
where I left it
and is not anywhere
in sight at all