A voice said, Look me in the stars
And tell me truly, men of earth,
If all the soul-and-body scars
Were not too much to pay for birth.
“A Question” by Robert Frost [w/ Audio]
Reply

moon slips behind
thin, wispy clouds —-
shifting shape.
Human affairs ever grind on --
Ancient or modern, shit repeats.
Mountains and rivers are changeless.
We climb to find our vista seats.
Cascade, fisher, and bridge -- subdued;
Air grows cold near dreamy, deep pools.
We read an old stone monument,
As tears glisten on cheeks like jewels.
Original Poem in Simplified Chinese:
人事有代谢, 往来成古今。
江山留胜迹, 我辈复登临。
水落鱼梁浅, 天寒梦泽深。
羊公碑字在, 读罢泪沾襟。
Note: This is poem #125 from 300 Tang Poems [唐诗三百首]
Matter comes in countless varieties,
And the forms are evershifting, as well.
Writers must dance the varied characters
To dulcet lines where elegance dwells,
Finding the right pace, cadence, and stresses
To blend like harmony in the five hues.
Though the tune fades in and out randomly
And the path is rugged and hazard-strewn,
Those who know the ways of change and order
Will find all falls into place with a flow.
But if one misses the proper pivots
It's like grabbing the tail to steer the nose --
Like yellow painted onto wet, black walls,
One's writing becomes muddy, and it stalls.
The original in Simplified Chinese:
其为物也多姿,其为体也屡迁。
其会意也尚巧,其遣言也贵妍。
暨音声之迭代,若五色之相宣。
虽逝止之无常,固崎锜而难便。
苟达变而识次,犹开流以纳泉。
如失机而后会,恒操末以续颠。
谬玄黄之粗叙,故浍涊而不鲜。
It is a happy talent to know how to play.
Ralph waldo emerson
Just living is not enough… one must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower.
Hans christian andersen
Don’t abandon kindness, mercy, and sympathy in an emergency.
Qiānzì wén [千字文], Ch. 3
Logic will take you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.
albert Einstein
You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment.
Henry david thoreau