When the Stars Fell to Earth
Sijun Cui
There were no bells, no warnings.
The stars came down before dawn,
carrying human language
through torn layers of cloud—
a permitted violation, perhaps,
a glowing secret slipping through
a crack in time.
They weren’t always bright.
Some fell like dust
onto the shoulders of the world,
like silent seeds,
heavy with the echoes of seasons and age-worn fatigue.
One star dodged the cooking smoke
and saw a farmer planting beans
in a patch of forgotten earth.
A faint shimmer stirred the soil.
The farmer whispered a prayer,
afraid to open his eyes—
then heard a voice, soft as breath:
“Do you remember the silver flower?”
In a quiet alley,
a poet looked up at the sky
and laughed,
saying a star had lost a tooth.
He drew constellations in the dirt
like ancient battlefields,
and suddenly heard hooves in the wind.
His eyes grew clear,
recalling a bar from another life,
and a single smile—
for on that day,
a falling star had kissed his brow.
Not every falling star is a blessing.
A mother sat beneath a lamp,
sewing a name
into the fabric of an old coat—
the name of her newborn child.
The star had whispered:
“He’s only gone to another planet.”
The world doesn’t see the truth,
only retells the tales.
People complain of their softened moods,
of how slowly the flowers bloom,
and how, drunk,
their shadows cling too close.
Life continues,
between oil and salt and vinegar,
while the moon speaks from the bottom of a well—
but no one grasps her meaning.
The stars insist that spring has come.
Yet no one asks
whether true spring
is simply hope, hidden
in the secret corners of the human heart.
As for the old stories of the cosmos,
the forgotten gods—
a star merely says:
They still love the mortal world.
Sijun Cui
As a poet, Sijun Cui (he/him) has been an active presence online for many years, creating an extensive collection of poetry and essays on diverse subjects. He has conducted in-depth research in poetry, fiction, and scriptwriting. Passionate about reading, critical thinking, and writing, his interests span a wide range of disciplines, particularly philosophy, science, religion, history, and sociology.
What distinguishes him is his innovative mindset, exceptional imagination, and profound wisdom, which have earned his works widespread admiration. He is also an avid sports enthusiast—a passion he developed during his university years.