water lilies stand
confidently, while herons
step warily.
Lily Pad Heron [Haiku]
Reply
Category Archives: poem
“Retort” by Paul Laurence Dunbar [w/ Audio]
"Thou art a fool," said my head to my heart,
"Indeed, the greatest of fools thou art,
To be led astray by the trick of a tress,
By a smiling face or a ribbon smart;"
And my heart was in sore distress.
Then Phyllis came by, and her face was fair,
The light gleamed soft on her raven hair;
And her lips were blooming a rosy red.
Then my heart spoke out with a right bold air:
"Thou art worse than a fool, O head!"
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
Hornbill [Haiku]
perching hornbill:
a plodding half-ton bovine
doesn't merit attention.
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
The Other Shore [Free Verse]
Standing on the bank,
Looking at the other shore --
A hundred meters or a mile?
Does it matter,
In such a fast flow?
If I were to swim for it,
Launching myself into
Those cold, choppy waves,
Which would I reach first:
The other shore, or
The Falls, downstream?
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
“Drunk in the Fairyland” by Huang Tingjian [w/ Audio]
In the face of heavy morning cloud again
And drizzling evening rain,
Leaning on each other, rugged the hills remain.
The Gorge of Witch and lofty peaks
Lock in the Southern Palace rosy cheeks.
In spring the halberds move in force,
Maids in fair dress welcome heroes on horse,
To the riverside town they go only.
I come to the wasteland a thousand miles away,
With my shadow so lonely.
How can I become cheerful and gay?
It is said the Southern land is so high,
It nearly scrapes the sky.
To the capital I stretch my eye,
I see but misty water far and nigh.
When I drank in the hall,
My friends were talents all.
Songstresses sang with rosy face
And dancers danced with grace,
Drunk, they intoxicated the place.
Hearing the cuckoo's home-going song
All the night long,
Could I resist my yearning strong?
Translation: Xu Yuanchong [translator]. 2021. Deep, Deep the Courtyard. [庭院深深.] Cite Publishing: Kuala Lumpur, pp. 191-192.
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
Submerge [Haiku]
Aesthete Levels [Free Verse]
Anyone
can see beauty
in the flawless.
Artists
can see beauty
in the flawed.
Sages
can see beauty
in chaos.
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
“Ode on Solitude” by Alexander Pope [w/ Audio]
Happy the man, whose wish and care
A few paternal acres bound,
Content to breathe his native air,
In his own ground.
Whose herds with milk, whose fields with bread,
Whose flocks supply him with attire,
Whose trees in summer yield him shade,
In winter fire.
Blest, who can unconcernedly find
Hours, days, and years slide soft away,
In health of body, peace of mind,
Quiet by the day,
Sound sleep by night; study and ease,
Together mixed; sweet recreation;
And innocence, which most does please,
With meditation.
Thus let me live, unseen, unknown;
Thus unlamented let me die;
Steal from the world, and not a stone
Tell where I lie.
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
“Because I Could Not Stop for Death” (479) by Emily Dickinson [w/ Audio]
Because I could not stop for Death —
He kindly stopped for me —
The Carriage held but just Ourselves —
And Immortality.
We slowly drove — He knew no haste
And I had put away
My labour and my leisure too,
For His Civility —
We passed the School, where Children strove
At Recess — in the Ring —
We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain -
We passed the Setting Sun -
Or rather - He passed us -
The Dews drew quivering and chill -
For only Gossamer, my Gown -
My Tippet - only Tulle -
We paused before a House that seemed
A Swelling of the Ground -
The Roof was scarcely visible -
The Cornice - in the Ground-
Since then - ‘tis Centuries - and yet
Feels shorter than the Day
I first surmised the Horses’ Heads
Were toward Eternity -
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
Green Fields [Haiku]
the rice fields
are at their most verdant;
scent of rain.
Tiger Riding for Beginners 