there is no way
to soothe a troubled heart
not wine not whiskey
nor the temporary lull
of music
only perhaps the touch
of a valued friend
can ease the aching
on a night like this
Month: September 2018
New Fall Night: To My Cousins by Wei Ying-wu
Our two worlds share this autumn night
we see the same River of Stars
a leaf drops from a towering paulownia
thoughts of going home fill my empty rooms
I worry about the hardships of the people
then too I have my own minor ills
I won’t be leaving anytime soon
but my hairline has already slipped away
translated by Red Pine
“The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be.”
from Douglas Moore’s Art of Quotation
“The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be.”
“We now live in a world where we’re connected to everything except ourselves.”
from Douglas Moore’s Art of Quotation
“We now live in a world where we’re connected to everything except ourselves.”
Zat Rana, writer
from Seeing Off Master T’an by Meng Chiao
Those who have relied on poetry for a living
Since ancient times have never gotten fat.
This old man, hungry from poetry, is not bitter,
But your suffering tears fall like rain.
translated by Stephen Owen
Aeschylus Quote: Happiness
from the blog A Pondering Mind
Happiness is a choice that requires effort at times.
-Aeschylus 525 BC – 456 BC
Ancient Greek Dramatist
from a line by Chang Yu: only the scent
there in the air
it lingers tenaciously
even after parting
only the scent
of you my love
long long it hovers
covers me
from a line by Lu Yu: white hair
no turning back
white hair to brown
no losing years
or shedding experiences
we carry them with us
the lines on the face
the white hair on the head
like badges signifying
campaigns won and lost
a lifetime here
in white hair
faces swirl
no sleep
for a restless mind
faces swirl
around
with eyes closed
or open
reminding me
of where
of what
I’ve been
Boudoir Feelings by Li Shang-yin
Red dew on floral chamber, white honeycomb–
Yellow bee and purple butterfly, both in disarray,
At spring’s casement, awakened from a dream of love:
They share the same bed, and do not know it.
translated by Eugene Eoyang & Irving Y. Lo
Leonard Durso 