Moonlit Night

Translation collaboration with Alan Steinle

Moonlit Night is the collaborated translation of a classic Chinese poem (月夜) written by Du Fu 杜甫 (712 – 770), a prominent Chinese poet of the Tang dynasty. 

月夜 月夜 Moonlit Night
今夜鄜州月 今夜鄜州月 The moon shines brightly on Fuzhou tonight;
閨中衹獨看 闺中只独看 Alone in her room, she looks at the light;
遙憐小兒女 遥怜小儿女 She pities her children, so far from their dad;
未解憶長安 未解忆长安 She misses Chang’an—she’s lonely and sad;
香霧雲鬟濕 香雾云鬟湿 Her long supple hair with perfume is sprayed;
清輝玉臂寒 清辉玉臂寒 The clear moon shines on cool arms of jade;
何時倚虛幌 何时倚虚幌 When, near the curtain, will our hearts soar?
雙照淚痕乾 双照泪痕干 We’ll sit in the moonlight, tears falling no more!

Blessings

The Living Poetry prompt

I gave you sunshine
You didn’t see it

I gave you moonlight
You didn’t appreciate it

I gave you children’s laughter
You got annoyed

I gave you a sweet someone
You complained when would the one come

I gave you a loyal puppy
You said there was too much work

You let all the blessings pass by
Now you cry to me like an orphan
‘God are you ever there?’

Minimalist

A collaboration with Jonathan Swift Pines

There are things she sees are pretty
They go beyond her basic needs

The sun is warm and cheery
Too much of it
freckles gather on her cheeks

Charming freckles, like those on a child
whose innocent heart would burst with a smile

The rain is soothing and musical
Too much of it
sadness floods on her soul

Raindrops can harmonize with memories
Too many and the mind is adrift

The world of art is beautiful and enchanting
Too much of it
inadequacy breaks down her creativity

Happiness makes her vulnerable
The more she has, the more she has to lose

There are so many lows after the highs
When all that is stripped away
She realises how much satisfaction
she has in a mundane life

Thank God You Are Alive

I don’t know
how do people live with
not knowing
if their love one
is alive or dead

I can only imagine
they are like a blowfish
keeps every possibility inside

I have been like that
for the last few days
until today
I come to know that
you are alive

This news is like
a gentle hand
gives me permission
to cry

I can only imagine
the other news
would be like a knife
stabs and twists
all the possibilities
to bleed out

Purple – The Colour Collection

One night
the lilac candle
in the wind
tango danced with
the rose of Sharon
by my window sill

That overwhelming
sense of seduction
fractured my mind

In my sleep
purple daisies
flooded my dreams

My remaining
sense of clarity
screamed for
the purification
of an amethyst

Yellow – The Colour Collection

She painted her nails in yellow
like the daisies thrive in desert

She painted her toes in yellow
like the sunflowers bloom on the beach

Her heart filled with sunshine
and the hope of forever green

 

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Travel Away

The Living Poetry visual prompt

There is something about packing up your bag
to travel away from all things
unresolved, unresolvable, underserving of resolution

There is this escape to
an unknown, unfamiliar, understating place
where your story is new, fresh, mysterious
worthy of all the attention from strangers

The you on a travel trip
is you
is the you never expressed
isn’t you
isn’t the you known most of your lifetime

A plane carries you away
to a land of wonder
only you define it to be
when the troubled waters
flooded home

(Photo by Stephanie Katz)

A Good Friend

Having a good friend
is like
having a timer
when boiling eggs.

It reins in distraction,
prevents my heart from hardening,
stops me collapsing in the heap,
and maintains my sense of decency.

– dedicated to Niks

A Belated Birthday Present

A little poem by Carlos, Madrid