Thursday, May 21, 1998

Tumble down in the fall you made yourself having through years with once strong hands formed these writhing islands to fit a Javanese play of shadows.

But strong hands turned to blackened claws; Garuda masked, degraded as a grasping bird. defiled your sultanate pushing you and all the islands beyond the edge.

When you tumbled, you tumbled a whole people who, with these islands, writhing now, ridding themselves of claws look for renewal in a cleansed Garuda, seeking, screaming what and how and who?

-- By William Sommers