Paulines and Paulisms

Photograph by Paul Hsu Master Chordata's Speech in Three Parts I Brothers and Sisters of the Orders of Frog and Toad, here lies a fellow amphibian, slain on the battlefield. Let us prepare the body for a proper burial. Lord of the Flies, have mercy on all of our souls. II Sergeant Metadata Anura-Bufo served as a Special Forces training officer in the Marine Army and leaves behind spouse and spawn. This is he, my beloved son, may he rest in peace and make the leap into the great unknown. III Ultimately, we seem to bumble through our froggy and toady lives, fumbling with maladroit words before stumbling upon more felicitous ones to express our grievous losses of loved ones in these interminable tribal wars. With rocks and stones, let us build this memorial. Yes, dear family and friends, today we gather together by the wind-stirred waters of collective memory and bathe-light this solemn occasion in a tongue-tied stillness as raindrops paint the desert and as s...

Photograph by Paul Hsu Great Poem of Green and White Riparian reflection: I am desert wanderer. Clouds drift across mind's sky. Egrets stalk in water. by Paul Hsu 8-20-16

Photograph by Paul Hsu Seahorse Synchronization In the beginning there's the courtship dance. Seahorse synchrony may involve changing colors, swimming side by side while holding tails, and wheeling around in unison. In the middle of the action the eggs are deposited from the mother's ovipositor to the father's brood pouch. They greet each other in the morning. The father carries their young until it's time. With his muscular contractions the fry are born. Of course, then there's nature versus nurture. In the end the dance partners part their ways and start the mysterious process of sea life all over again and again. by Paul Hsu 7-31-16 Revised 8/1-3/16