“Return to where I belong”
Where do I belong
Home near Min and Emei thousands of miles away
My hundred years nearly half gone
The coming days won’t be many
Suddenly I’ve seen another leap year at Huangzhou
All of my children
speak and sing in the local dialect
Friends from these mountains
with chicken and pork and festival wine
urge me to grow old at East Hill
What can I say
as I leave here
the events of our lives
come and go like a shuttle
I’ll soon be watching the autumn wind
stir crystal waves of the Luo
Lucky for these slender willows by my house
Thinking of me
no one will lop their tender branches
Pass the word
to elders along the Yangtze
sun my fishing cape now and then
translated by Yun Wang
;
Su Dong-po
To the Tune of”Southern Countryside” I by Su Dong-po
Frost is on the ground and the river has shrunk
Distant shoals appear amid shimmering green shallows
As the wine wears off I begin to feel the wind
I shiver
My torn hair clings to my head with too many thoughts
How can I give thanks to autumn
Let me say goodbye with this sparkling cup
Everything becomes a dream in the end
Let this be enough
Tomorrow even butterflies will mourn the chrysanthemums
translated by Yun Wang
from To the Tue of “The Celestial by the River” III by Su Dong-po
I have long hated not owning my body
When does one forget worldly labor
Night deepens as wind calms water’s rippling silk
My small boat shall vanish from here
to travel life in rivers and seas
translated by Yun Wang
Leonard Durso 