but every person
who stops on the street
for a photo to prove
he was here stands
under a flag

one in three
has a red rectangle
with five yellow
stars on a cheek

and the boulevard
is lined with them

a cluster gathers
around a speaker
and a drum
raising fists
chanting in time
with the beat

and three flags wave
in front of them

a man makes a video
of the torch on a television
monitor by the walk

pointing his camera
at the screen
filming film
so he will have
the story of a story
not politics
to take home

a story of a story
about being somewhere
draped in one flag
or another

waiting for the torch
Shenzhen, 8 May 2008

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