it’s hard
reading the news
the face
of some politicians
makes me nauseous
in my head
Month: March 2016
unspoken conversations
I dream
of unspoken conversations
all I wanted
to tell you
those many times
we talked
would you have listened
without turning away
would these dreams
of conversations
mattered
in the light
of day
from Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
“Look beneath the surface: never let a thing’s intrinsic quality or worth escape you.”
what draws us near
we cannot always
escape
that which draws
us near
Seeing Off a Friend by Hsueh T’ao
There’s frost on the reeds tonight in this riverine world
the mountains look dreary in the cold moonlight
who says the miles between us begin this very night
my goodbye dream goes with you beyond the farthest passes
translated by Red Pine
Written in Late Spring at Our Newly Rented Nang West Thatch Hut by Tu Fu
A traveler in the Gorges I keep sighing
encountering late spring yet again
I wish the blackbirds would be quiet
how long can these flowers last
diaphanous clouds in deserted valleys
fading sunlight on surging waves
I wonder if the war will ever end
but that isn’t what hurts my heart
translated by Red Pine
from Frontier Songs, First Series, Section Three by Tu Fu
If you draw a bow, draw the strongest,
If you use an arrow, use the longest:
To shoot a man, first shoot his horse,
To capture rebels, first capture their chief.
In killing men, also, there are limits,
And each state has its own borders.
So long as invasion can be curbed,
What’s the use of much killing?
translated by Ronald C. Miao
from Frontier Songs, First Series, Section One by Tu Fu
Sad, sad they leave their old village,
Far, far they go to the Chiao River.
Officials have an appointed time of arrival,
To flee from orders is to run afoul of capture.
The ruler is already rich in lands,
Expanding the frontier brings no gain!
Abandoned forever is the love of father, mother,
Sobbing, they march away with spears on their backs.
translated by Ronald Miao
from Frontier Songs, First Series, Section Two by Tu Fu
Sharpen the sword in the Sobbing Water,
The water reddens, the blade wounds my hand.
How much I want to hush the sound of anguish;
Too long entangled are the strands of my heart!
When a man of courage promises life to his country,
Then what is there to regret and lament?
Deeds of fame live on in the Unicorn Pavilion,
Bones of soldiers will quickly decay.
translated by Irving Y. Lo
Benjamin Franklin on money spent on war
What vast additions to the convenience and comforts of living might Mankind have acquired if the money spent in wars had been employed in public utility.
Leonard Durso 