with trepidation
remembering
my mother
whose taste
for January
was less
than palatable
sour
in one’s mouth
fear
mixed with
anxiety
too many
deaths
in this month
a realization
later come by
and as I stand
facing the end
of one year
the beginning
of another
honor those ghosts
who stand
with me
this night
and drink
enough whiskey
to forget
my name
so as to
sally forth
blameless
from darkness
into the light
Month: December 2014
Thoughts of a Quiet Night by Li Po (Li Bai)
Before the bed, bright moonlight.
I took it for frost on the ground.
I raised my head to dream upon that moon,
then bowed my head, lost, in thoughts of home.
translated by J.P. Seaton
where I come from
is not
where
I’m going
a place
of departure
like a train
station
track 2
all aboard
for points
west
east
north south
no matter
footsteps
in the hall
doors
open close
another day
here
in the city
where I live
but not
where I’m from
biding time
till the whıstle
blows
See a Friend Off to Wu by Tu Hsun-ho
I see you to Ku-su.
Homes there, sleeping by the stream.
Ancient palace, few abandoned spots.
And by the harbor, many little bridges.
In the night market, lotus, fruit and roots.
On the spring barges, satins and gauze.
Know, far off, the moon still watches.
Think of me there, in the fisherman’s song.
translated by J.P. Seaton
For Someone Far Away by Wang Wei
All year I stay alone in my bedroom
dreaming of Mountain Pass, remembering our separation.
No swallow comes with letters in its claws.
I see only the new moon like the eyebrow of a moth.
translated by Tony Barnstone, Willis Barnstone, & Xu Haixin
my heart
there
it goes
once again
into uncharted
waters
adrift
in a boat
without
sail rudder
or oars
following
the current
wherever
it takes
me
from Writing As Reading by Susan Sontag
Reading usually precedes writing. And the impulse to write is almost always fired by reading. Reading, the love of reading, is what makes you dream of becoming a writer. And, long after you’ve become a writer, reading books others write–and rereading the beloved books of the past–constitutes an irresistible distraction from writing. Distraction. Consolation. Torment. And yes, inspiration.
Yunus Emre on religion
For those who truly love God and His ways
All the people of the world are brothers and sisters.
translated by Talat S. Halman
repeat mode: the holiday season
two out of
three nights
you’ve entered
my dreams
how far
you’ve traveled
through time
and space
and yet
look no older
than the day
I saw you
first
no wonder
there is
that pain
in my chest
once
again
A Confession by Tu Mu
With my wine-bottle, watching by river and lake
For a lady so tiny as to dance on my palm,
I awake, after dreaming ten years in Yang-chou,
Known as fickle, even in the Street of Blue Houses.
translated by Witter Bynner & Kiang Kang-hu
Leonard Durso 