Magic Wand
The rod in my hand
is of rare woods indeed;
The wand I hold
is of wondrous power!
It was fashioned from a tree
of the fruit immortal;
It was taken from
the boughs of the Tree of Life.
The Lady Queen Mother
was lord of the garden,
The Goddess of Youth
was guard at its gates,
When this trunk was planted
in the triple heavens,
When this sapling sprouted
from the soil of the true source,
In ancient times
in the orchard of the gods,
In the Mountains of Jade
where immortals dwelt.
In its youth it stood
by the Jasper Pool,
Its growth was tended
by godly maidens.
I cut it with a golden sickle,
carved nights and days
with a knife of jade,
and filled it at last
with force enough
for taming tigers
and subduing dragons,
spinning straw into gold
and turning stones into mushrooms.