“Riverside Daffodils” by Chen Yuyi [w/ Audio]

I still remember drinking on the Bridge of Noon
With bright wits of the day.
The silent moon
On endless river rolled away.
In lacy shadows cast by apricot flowers
We played our flutes till morning hours.

O'er twenty years have passed like dreams;
It is a wonder that I'm still alive.
Carefree, I mount the tower bathed in moonbeams.
So many things passed long
Ago survive
Only in fishermen's midnight song.

Translation: This Song Dynasty poem was translated by Xu Yuanchong in: Xu Yuanchong [translator]. 2021. Deep, Deep the Courtyard. [庭院深深.] Cite Publishing: Kuala Lumpur, p. 212-213

The Slow Flow [Haiku]

teal mountain stream
flows past rock's fluid striations,
proof flow can be slow.

Two Rivers Merge [Tanka]

two rivers merge:
the smaller, lighter branch
seems shut out, but
the bigger river moves
onward a lighter shade.

DAILY PHOTO: Kura River, Tbilisi

Invisible River [Haiku]

burbling sounds:
water runs - unseen -
between polished rocks.

Black & Tan [Haiku]

two streams join:
one black and one tan --
the lighter moves on.

Ride by Night [Kyōka]

a little bird,
on a bit of driftwood,
speeds downriver
in the dusky, fading light.
doesn’t it know it can fly?

DAILY PHOTO: Hội An Waterways

Little River [Haiku]

in early spring,
the river is twining streams,
and tiny green isles.

DAILY PHOTO: Views of the Danube