“West River Moon” by Su Shi [w/ Audio]

Wavelet on wavelet glimmers by the shore;
Cloud on cloud dimly appears in the sky.
Unsaddled is my white-jadelike horse;
Drunk, asleep in the sweet grass I'll lie.
My horse's hoofs may break, I'm afraid,
The breeze-rippled brook paved by moonlit jade.
I tether my horse to a bough of green willow.
Near the bridge where I pillow
My head on arms and sleep till the cuckoo's song awakes
  A spring daybreak.

Translation: Xu Yuanchong [translator]. 2021. Deep, Deep the Courtyard. [庭院深深.] Cite Publishing: Kuala Lumpur, p. 238

Winter Moon [Haiku]

thin moon crescent 
shines brightly on a
cold, winter night.

Gibbous Moon [Haiku]

clouds dance around
the gibbous moon’s bright orb,
one warm winter night.

Hazy Moon [Haiku]

the moon is hazy;
whether it’s the clouds or
my mind, I can’t say.

Drinking Alone by Moonlight by Li Bai [w/ Audio]

A pot of wine, under blossoms.
   I drink alone, no friends in sight.
 I raise a cup to lustrous Moon:
   Me, Moon, and Shadow will make three.
 But Moon is a teetotaler.
   And Shadow just skulks at my feet.
 Still, Moon & Shadow are my chums.
   We need a bash before Spring's end.
 But my singing makes Moon recoil.
   And Shadow flops hard when I dance.
 At first, we have a grand old time,
   But we part ways when I drift off.
 We should keep this epic friendship rolling,
   and meet again in the River of Stars.

NOTE: I produced this “translation” / arrangement, using translations by Arthur Waley, Ezra Pound, and that of “The Anchor Book of Chinese Poetry” [ed. by Tony Barnstone and Chou Ping] to get varied takes on the source poem.

PROMPT: Moon

How much would you pay to go to the moon?

Not one thin dime. I have no pressing need to go to a place without breathable quantities of oxygen for longer than I can hold my breath. If complex technology is required every millisecond to stay alive… well, I know where I’m not wanted.

I’ll leave it to the billionaires who have enough spare change lying around to fund personal space programs.

I’ll stick to gazing at it admiringly from afar.

Faun by Moonlight [Haiku]

Faun by Moonlight (1900); Léon Spilliaert
what shenanigans
 goes on in milky moonlight,
  unseen by sleepers?

Cold Moon [Haiku]

my breath mingles
 with a bright white moon, on a
  cold winter night.

Cold Moon [Haiku]

full moon
over Fishtail Mountain-
breath swirls in cold air.