Dreaming of Returning - 夢歸還

Again, from doodling with my calligraphy and thinking along the same theme as the previous poem. I came up with this final version...

雪影飃飃雪山望 Gazing at the fleeting shadows of a snowstorm upon the snow mountains,
深宮半世別大唐 First half of my existence a palace life I lived – Now away from the Great Tang I go.
落雁何識昭君路 Little do descending Ansers know this road was once used by Chao Chun,
東土前生夢裡看 Only in dreams do I see in my earlier life of home.

This was to be the final version but when I was writing it out for digitization, the last three characters of the last line was changed to 夢歸還 because it sounded so much better. This meant the whole rhyming scheme had to be changed as well.  After a day’s worth of thinking, the new version became,

雪山迢迢雪路難 The Himalayas are far away and the snow covered road is difficult,
深宮半世今刻殘 First half of my existence a palace life I lived – Died at this hour.
落雁何識昭君道 Little do descending Ansers know this is the way of Chao Chun,
東土前生夢歸還 Alas, my previous existence - In dreams I returned.

Alas, this was not to be the case, as a day later after I had digitized a copy of brush writing, my mind wondered if some juxtaposition from line one to line three would work out some parallelism. I worked the lines backwards. The result came about when I forgot how 腥 was written.

1 血雨腥風胡馬蠻 Barbarian horses running amuck in rains of blood and foul winds,
2 宮花寵慣今刻殘 A cossetted palace flower died at this hour.
3 雪山下世昭君道 By the Himalayas, a remaining life, like the way Chao Chun had taken,
4 東土前生夢歸還 And yet dreaming of a previous existence returning home.

1 The first four characters is an idiom to mean carnage.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Wencheng

2 Together with the first line, it paints a picture of unrestrained horses trampling on the flowers growing in the palace. “palace flower” - princess

3 “Snow Mountains” is the term used by Tibetans.

下世 means “to die”, “the next life”, “to be reborn” can all be used in the translation since line two says, her life had ended figuratively. However, I felt that “her remaining years” is a better choice since the next line has 前生. 道, like in English can mean a road, path or style and manner of doing something.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wang_Zhaojun

4 “The eastern lands” refers to the Chinese empire. I felt it was redundant to translate as it has no added value. It is already implied in the poem.

Wednesday, January 26, 2022

Where Chao Chun Had Gone Before - 曾經昭君路

I was just doodling on my calligraphy practise and my mind wandered into the lyrics of 昭君怨, "王昭君 - 悶坐…"

1 雪山將近草原家 The snow mountains are nearing and home is where the grasslands are,
2 雙親拜別淚顏灑 I knelt before my parents, in tears, to say goodbye.

3 漢女曾經路此過 Once upon this road, a maid of Han had passed before me,
4 馬蹄聲悶夕陽下 The sound of galloping hooves smothered me under the setting sun.

1 “snow mountains” can mean the Himalayas as known to Tibetans.

2 “to kneel before the parents” is the utmost filial piety children can show thanks to parents for their upbringing.  Here we don't know who is in greater sobs, the parents or her.

3 “Maid of Han” refers to 王昭君. Now we know the person is not returning home but to make a new home there. At the same time, this event must have taken place during the Tang Dynasty when “imperial princess” were married off to Tibetans as marriage diplomacy. Most probably, refers to Princess Wencheng.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wang_Zhaojun

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Wencheng

4 Most probably setting up camp as dusk approached.

Tuesday, January 25, 2022

Paradise Dreaming - 蓬山夢

I was doodling with paper and pencil while waiting for my Hero Wars Game to finish its missions…

1 霧鎖蓬山洞外天 Fog engulfing paradise and the world beyond the grotto,
2 風雲萬里遠綿綿 Unending turbulence of the world is far far away.
3 月渡銀漢星無光 And when the moon crosses the River of Silver, stars will be dimmed,
4 棄世修道隔塵烟 This mortal place I abandoned, the Way I sought, tainting not myself in worldly dust.

5 青松冷淡千載秋 The cold and drab green pines are still here after a thousand autumns,
6 紫檀珍貴焚香善 Precious purple sandalwood - only to be burnt like incense.

7 不份逍遙一生夢 If alas, enlightenment is not meant to be, a life of carefree dreams then.
8 若緣騰飛九霄殿 But if so destined, to Ninth Heaven’s palace, I’ll be soaring to.

1 Grottos are the abodes of immortals when they practise their austerity and seeking enlightenment.

2 Literally, “wind and clouds”

3 The moon refers to the enlightened and the stars, the common masses. Milky Way – the river of silver.

4 “worldly dust” – affairs of the mundane world.

5 The pine tree has no great commercial value and hence able to survive for a long time.

6 On the other hand, sandalwood is highly sought after for their fragrance. Honolulu is known as the Sandalwood Mountain. The trees were fell and sent to China to be burnt as incense and hardly are there any left today. Lines 5 and 6 say that it is better to be under the radar. To become prominent is a dangerous thing.

8 It is believed that the Chinese Heaven has nine layers. The topmost layer is where the Jade Emperor held court. The palace is called 靈霄殿. Palace of Spiritual Heaven. 宮 and 殿 are palaces with the former being the residence of the emperor and the later is used for administrative purposes.

Monday, January 24, 2022

Tears Of The Rouge - 胭脂淚

While doodling with paper and pencil while listening to “Summer Kisses and Winter Tears” repeatedly, I was waiting for a game battle to complete, these words came floating into my mind as it wandered off absently…

1 為何胭脂淚未散 Why are rouge tears not dried yet?
2 東風早別醉已殘 Long had the East Wind bid goodbye and inebriation is waning,
3 舊日紅玫今時菊 The red red rose in the past and chrysanthemum of the present,
4 深夜曇花明朝蘭 Queen of the Night for tonight but orchid in the morning.

5 凡塵世代無不如 Generations in the mortal world is like this,
6 嵗月流光看快慢 Time passes quickly or slowly depends on one’s view.
7 喜樂悲哀難分解 Joy and sorrow are hard to separate and to be understood,
8 春宵年華夢中還 Spring nights of youth can only be returned in dreams.

1 Nowadays, both sexes can use rouge to look better.

2 The warm spring wind, a signal for rebirth, hence youth. “inebriation” can also be used figuratively like living a carefree life of the youthful.

3 Chrysanthemum blooms best during autumn, the time of approaching one’s twilight years. The author is lamenting that fading beauty is being replaced by younger generations.

4 Similar comparison in the previous line. The night flower only blooms for a few hours in the night and by morning, the bloom is spent.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epiphyllum_oxypetalum

5 “this” refers to one’s heydays are gone and the old guard being replaced by newcomers.

6 “Year moon” refers to lunar phases and “flowing light” refers to passing of time. 光 as in 光陰 (light and darkness)

7 解 also means “to solve”, “to untie”, “to understand” etc.

8春宵年華 is a euphemism for nightly activities of the youthful nature.

Sunday, January 23, 2022

A Life Time Together

Another doodling while practising my calligraphy.

1 金風玉露伴秋時 The Golden Wind and Jade dew are autumn’s handmaidens,
2 黄菊紅葉配雲衣 Yellow chrysanthemums and red maple leaves accessorize the clouds,
3 今生歲月太匆匆 In this life, time passes too hurriedly,
4 修來此恩何容易 Accumulated merit from previous lives - ain’t easy in finding true love.

1 In the Chinese theory of the Five Elements, autumn belongs to the metal/gold element. Hence autumn wind is known as the “golden wind”. Autumn here refers to twilight of one’s years and white clouds, white hair.

Jade dew is a euphemism for the dew in autumn. The meaning is also extended to mean “fine wine”. A modern meaning refers to Gyukuro, a type of Japanese green tea.

2 In the original text, “maple“ is inferred.

4 修來 is short for 修業將來 “to improve for the future”, that is to do good in this life so that future life will become better.

Basically, the poems speaks of time passing too quickly when one is enjoying life with one’s beloved.

Friday, January 21, 2022

My Scoundrel Of A Husband

This is the third poem of the day as I struggled with sleep. My mind was hyperactive from the Vietnamese coffee I had for dinner.

1 君心未定花草惹 Flirting with flowers and grasses, the heart of my lord has not settled yet,
2 定時妾容夕陽斜 And when it does, the oblique setting sun shines  on the face of this maid.
3 東風莫識芙蓉帳 The East Wind does not know the hibiscus patterned curtains,
4 識日從何秋香借 And when it does, whence can autumn fragrance be borrowed?

1 In traditional Chinese culture, the husband is the lord and master. The husband is a scoundrel, regardless of the status of the women he philandered.

2 “Maid” is a self- deprecating term used as a third person to mean the wife. The setting sun denotes twilight of one’s years.

3 “East wind” denotes the vigor of the young male. “Hibiscus curtains” are fine delicate silk used as curtains for the bed for the rich and powerful. Here it infers that the husband because of his peccadilloes, no longer visits her boudoir.

4 And when his vigor has diminished, he begins to appreciate the wife’s virtues but then both are too old… 秋香 means fragrance of chrysanthemums. Autumn is their blooming season. At the same time, it is used as a pun for it is a common name for a young maid. In the days of yore, men sometimes take the handmaidens of the wife as concubines.

Thursday, January 20, 2022

Incomplete Storytelling

This poem was inspired when I was doodling with my calligraphy. The words, 深夜靜時淚聲聞 came into my mind. This is the second poem of the day. I had to leave it as I had plenty of other things to do. At dinner, I had a very strong Vietnamese coffee and after sleeping for two hours, I woke up at 1am wide awake and my mind was racing and was able to come up with the rest. Obviously, I did not get any sleep till the next morning after playing my video game.

Currently, I have no idea on expanding a few more stanzas to tell a better story. It is too abrupt to end the second stanza in this way. Perhaps, in the future, I may come up with a better storyline… For now, it’s just a place holder for my future muse to inflame my passion.

1 夜闌靜時涙泣聞 Late into the night when all is quiet a sobbing was heard,
2 隔牆哭啼見無人 But I see no one over the wall.
3 偷望窗外暗月濛 Stealthily through the peered window is a dimly lit hazy moon,
4又恐步出遇幽魂 Too afraid to venture out in case an apparition met.

5 五更雞鳴索一尋 Crowing rooster at the hour of the fifth that the cause dared to seek,
6 風過銀漢摘星辰 Through the River of Silver, the wind plucks away at the stars.
7 共同今生歲月流 As time passes by in togetherness we lived,
8 嬌妻奇遇渡紅塵 In this mundane world, a pretty wife fortuitously encountered.

5 A Chinese is equivalent to two standard hours. Midnight is the 3rd hour. It is believed that all ghosts and apparitions vanish when the rooster starts crowing to signal the coming of dawn.

6 River of Silver is the Chinese term for the Milky Way. With the coming of dawn, stars and constellations are disappearing as though the wind is tucking them away.

Thursday, January 20, 2022

Dreaming of Spring While Inebriated - 醉夢春

Again, another calligraphy doodling inspiration…

1 東風未別花落盡 Falling flowers but the east wind hasn’t bid goodbye yet,
2 鑒裡人面不敢信 The face in the bronze mirror but not dared recognized.
3 秋臨月明枕濕淚 Autumn is coming, the moon is bright and the pillow is wet with tears,
4 醉暖柔夢是一春 Dreams warmed by tender inebriation is springtime for me.

1 Without the next line to clarify things, this could imply that someone had died before their time.

2 Before the advent of glass mirrors, Chinese ones were made from polished bronze.

3 Advancing years do not return like the moon.

Thursday, January 20, 2022

A Dream's Visitant - 夢中客

What a difference a day makes! Yesterday, it was gorgeous with plenty of sunshine, blue skies and fluffy white clouds floating over Catalina but today, it was cloudy, grey and dismay and of course, the islands had vanished like a whisper..

1 杯傾蓬山一水隔 Tilted is the cup towards paradise separated by a stretch of water,
2 月色矇矓船舟泊 Under the hazy moon is a boat in docked.
3 歌曲未盡雷鼓突 The song has yet to end when came a sudden thunderous clap of drums,
4 愰然悟醒夢中客 Abruptly awoken to realize a visitant to a dream that I am.

1 A cup of wine had overturned and dreamt that paradise is just nearby.
3 Most probably the noise came from the falling cup.

Monday, January 17, 2022

Price of Immortality & The First 11 Poems Of 2022

Now that the backlog of last year's poems had been finished, I am now tackling the ones I had written so far this January of 2022.  With this, I am all up to date...

#1

This was again inspired by the magical beauty of Catalina on a sunlit day with mists hovering at the foot of the mountains.

1 蓬山脚下雲烟霧 Mists and fog at the foot of the Mt. Penglai,
2 晚春莫至桃源島 Where spring never grows old in paradise.

3 歲月停流花不落 Where time stands still and blossoms never wither,
4 凡塵金風又一露 Only in the mortal world where autumn comes and goes.

1 The mountain in the Immortal Isles of the Eastern Ocean

2 “late spring never approaches the peach blossom spring” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Peach_Blossom_Spring

3 “the passing years, the waxing and waning moon waning and flowers never fall”

4 “In the mortal dust where the golden wind once more appears”

Sunday, January 2, 2022

#2

This was inspired as I walked back to the car from my daily walk at Wilson Park. The first line just breezed into my mind. 

1 初露紅梅染天香 Heaven is dyed in fragrance of the first appearing plum blooms,
2 春風微動芙蓉帳 Spring wind flutters gently at the hibiscus drapes.
3 難遇東君珠何用 Of what use of pearls when ‘tis difficult to meet the Lord of the East Wind,
4 朝貢朝朝荔枝嘗 Oh, he's at breakfast, sampling imperial tributes of fresh.

1 In reference to the Plum Consort – the predecessor to Yang Guifei. Heaven refers to the emperor Hsuan Tsung.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consort_Mei

2 Spring wind – refers to an amorous situation. Silk drapes with a hibiscus design.

3 When Yang Guifei became the emperor’s new favorite, Plum Consort was neglected. In one of the two quarrels that the emperor with consort Yang and sent her home, the emperor thought of Plum Blossom Consort and sent her a bushel of pearls. However, she refused the gift and instead wrote a poem,

柳葉雙眉久不描, Willow shaped brows no longer painted,
殘妝和淚污紅綃. My ruined makeup from tears stained my red silk robes.
長門盡日無梳洗, No need to pretty myself in a life of the Eternal Gate,
何必珍珠慰寂寥 So, why the need to have pearls to console my loneliness.

In the end, the emperor had her poem set to music.

Ballad of the Eternal Gate - https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Chen_Jiao

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chen_Jiao

4 "Oh, he's at breakfast" is not in the original text.  It is added to make things clearer to the reader.

Wednesday, January 5, 2022

#3

There are some good lines in the previous poem that having them discarded is such a pity. So, I had to come up with something to put them to good use. Following on the same theme but with a different slant…

1 曾經楊家有女俏 Once there was a pretty daughter from the family of Yang,
2 朝暮君伴鶯語嬌 Day and night, in a mellifluous voice, she accompanied the emperor.
3 華清賜浴添色餘 Bestowed to bathe in the Pure Flower Pool; any makeup superfluous be,

4 路遙八百妃子笑 Long is the road of eight hundred miles and a smile on the Consort’s face.

2 Besides her beauty, Yang Guifei was musically talented and was able to match the emperor’s music skills. She choreographed the grand Dance of the Rainbow Skirt and the Feathered Dress and was set to music by the emperor.

3 Short for 華清池 - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huaqing_Pool

4 Yang Guifei has a penchant for fresh lychees which are grown in the tropics of the empire. She would have them for breakfast daily when in season. From Fukien to Changan is approximately 800 miles apart. To keep the fruit fresh and available at the set time, military relays were used to deliver the fruit daily – old system of overnight delivery. “妃子笑” the Consort smiles is also the variety that she loved the most. This came from Tu Mu’s poem, “Passing the Pool of Flower Purity” 過華清,

一騎紅塵妃子笑 The Consort Smiles at the red dust flying around the rider,
無人知是荔枝來 No one knows that it is the arrival of lychees.

Wednesday, January 5, 2022

#4

This was inspired by a walk to the pier in Cabrillo Beach…

1 一道危牆二水望 One high wall and two waters I see,
2 東邊波平西巨浪 The east in calm while waves roared in the west.
3 貴賤人生非僥倖 Life’s nobility or the wretched is due not to being born lucky,
4 今日善積來世旺 But of today’s accumulated good deeds for next life’s prosperity.

3 “born” is not in the original text. It is inferred in the 4th line.

Friday, January 7, 2022

#5

The lines came to me in the car while crossing the bridge back home to San Pedro. The clouds were swirling in the sky and around the mid slopes were mists surrounding the homes.

山嵿飛雲半腰霧
洞中水滴何人到

Two days later, while doodling on the first line as calligraphy practise that progress were made…

The Price of Immortality

1 雲飛高峰半腰霧 Clouds over mountain peaks flew and upon mid slopes fog,
2 水滴巖洞已成道 Water-dripped cliff grottos had become roads.
3 千年相隔人現何 A thousand years had passed; where now are the people?

4 曾經綺夢向誰訴 Beautiful dreams of yore with whom to speak of…

2 The roofs of grottos and walls had been eroded that they are resembled a path. The last three characters can also mean “to attain immortality” and therefore took a very long time to attain something in this context. In using 路 instead, the double meaning will be destroyed.

Thursday, January 6, 2022

#6

This was inspired by the view of the cloud enshrouded Catalina during our daily work in the Marina. Didn’t realize that one can see the island at the end of the walk.

遠夢雲鎖蓬萊烟 Dreaming afar were clouds enshrouding the mists of paradise,
近覺陽光暖秋眠 Nearby, I felt sunshine warming my autumn sleep.
醉醒只是嘉州山 Awakened from my inebriated state, it’s only a Californian mountain,
吊牀歸搖舊夢現 So back to the sway of the hammock where old dreams reappear.

Sunday, January 9, 2022

#7

It was a sunny day and on top on the hill of Friendship Park, one can gaze on wilderness of the place. At the foot of the hill are some residential buildings and further away is the sleepy port of Los Angeles and Long Beach and yonder is the silent Pacific Ocean. One could see the ends of the world if the view was not blocked by the yonder snowcapped mountains of San Gabriel. I would have taken a photo if not for the ugliness marred by the working cranes and cargo boxes.

This photo only tells half the story... As usual, it is cloudy and misty on the Avalon side while the mainland bathes in bright sunshine,

1 一遍荒郊野草隔 One stretch of wilderness where wild grasses separate,
2 雲捲雪山遙遠白 Clouds swirling on snowcapped mountains in faraway white.
3 陽光嘉州無限幸 How fortuitous there are so many sunny days in California,
4 紅塵長短我是客 Life, whether be long or short, I’m just only a guest.

3 光 is used as a verb! I used 嘉 rather than the transliterated sound of 加 because California is known as the “Golden State”. "long and short" and also mean "pros and cons".

Monday, January 10, 2022

#8

1重陽菊香夜闌靜 The Double Ninth Festival night is quiet with the fragrance of the chrysanthemums,
2 月暗色淡照空廷 And dull is the moon shining over the empty palace courtyard.
3 曾經掌上騰飛燕 Once upon a time, from the palm of the hands, Flying Swallow launched
4 留仙裙帶守延陵 The sash from the fairy retaining skirt is now a guardian to the Tomb of Prolongevity.

1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_Ninth_Festival

3 Chao Feiyan (Flying Swallow of Chao) was known to be so delicate that she could dance on the palms of hands!

4 https://jeffinous.blogspot.com/2010/09/what-is-fairy-retaining-skirt.html. 延陵 is the name of the mausoleum where Emperor Chen was interred.

Tuesday, January 11, 2022

#9

While I was doing something absentmindedly, this line came a calling,

雲烟一散夢醒時

It was difficult to find a theme for it. So, I resorted to writing this line again and again with a brush, hopefully something will come out of it… Finally, while rewriting, I finally hit the mark,

1 曾經春光南柯時 Once upon a springtime in the Dream of the Southern Bough,
2 雲烟一散馬上辭 Immediate departure once the clouds and mists had dissipated.
3 門前柳枝已成蔭 The willow twig, stuck by the front door, is now a tree of shade,
4 無情歲月遲早事 Sooner or later it becomes a matter of time ebbing away.

1 https://jeffinous.blogspot.com/2011/02/dream-of-southern-bough-chinese-antz.html

2 馬上 can mean “on the mount of the horse” or “at once”

3 From the adage,

有意栽花花不發, With every desire of growing flowers, flowers will not bloom,
無心插柳柳成蔭. A careless sticking a willow twig into the ground, a shade tree it becomes.

Tuesday, January 11, 2022

#10

This poem came about when I espied an old copy of the poem written on some wrapping paper. The sounds of 野花蕊 sounded like 野花淚…

1 青樓華燈門前車 In front of the green bowers are grand lanterns and fine carriages,
2 誰知路傍野花淚 Who knows the tears of wild flowers by the roadside.
3 日短夜長笑無盡 Days are short and nights are long - in smiles without end,
4 人面莫識黄金醉 Faces I would not want to know but to be drunk in yellow gold.

1 Green bowers – euphemism for brothels.

2 Referring to the working courtesans.

3 Sleeping in the day and working in the night.

4 Refusing to grow attach to her clientele but their gold - "close your eyes and think of England"!

Wednesday, January 12, 2022

#11

This poem came about when the words 樓台一月 came into my mind while I was playing a video game in bed…  This seems to be the anthesis of the previous poem.

1 雲台一月伴金花 High over the Cloud Terrace the moon is with the golden flower,
2 銀河萬星賽年華 A myriad stars in the River of Silver vying with the youthful.
3 但願青樓長夢醉 Wishing that tomorrow, still in the green bowers dreaming away in intoxication.
4 莫憂吳苑盜彩霞 Worry not about stealing the radiant clouds in the palace gardens of Wu.

1 雲台 - definitely not the modern meaning of a camera tripod!

a. A lofty terrace that reached into the clouds

b. A Han Dynasty administrative building during the reign of Kuang Wu Ti where ministers gathered for court and extended to mean the imperial court itself.

c. Another Han Dynasty pre-photography gallery during the reign of Ming Ti to honor civil ministers and military officials of great merit to the empire. Later to mean such a place of honor.

d. four are names of mountains and name of a Taoist temple.

e. Name of various mountains

f. Name of a Taoist temple.

一月 could also mean “one month”, Chinese equivalent of January. In earlier drafts, this was discarded because it may distract the true intention of “one moon” until, I realize that this one moon refers to the author himself who considers himself better than all others vying for her attention.

Golden flower – the prettiest in the house, an equivalent of a Japanese Oiran, 花魁.

2 River of Silver - Direction translation of the Milky Way.  Here, the stars refer to the old  money bags.  Now we know for sure that the bright moon refers to the author who deems himself better than others due to his youth and good looks.  In other words, he's just flower seeker of no serious intention - a dandy.

3 Green bowers – euphemism for a brothel.

4 The States of Wu and Yueh were mortal enemies. Yueh was defeated and its ruler was taken prisoner. Fan Li, a Yueh minister use 美人計 “a beauty trap” to exact vengeance and rescue his sovereign. The palace of Wu became a place of decadence after its ruler tried to please his new favorite, a femme fatale sent to ruin his kingdom.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xi_Shi.

On a side note, the character for entertainment/pleasure is 娛which is combination of 女and吳 – the woman of Wu. This is because Hsi-hsi was “married” off to the king of Wu and no longer considered a Yueh person anymore.

Thursday, January 13, 2022

#12

This was again inspired by the reflection of the sun on the still blackish waters in the marina…

1 水靜如鑒一遍黑 A mirror-like stretch of calm waters in black,

2 目奪銀光兩點白 Blinding silvery light but two dots in white.
3 港内太平長久事 Inside the marina, peace is a permanent thing,
4 海遠鱗潮危牆隔 Due to a high wall separating the far off turbulent waves.

1 Most probably because of the depth of the waters in the marina that makes it look black.
2 The sun in the sky and its reflection on the water are like two dots of white.
3 There is no movement in marina as the boats are empty.
4 In the original text, the turbulence is described as fish scale waves.

Friday, January 14, 2022

The Last of 2021 Poems

2021 had been a prolific year for me in poetry writing. The spurt of activity came mainly from my vacation in Hawaii in November and upon coming home. This creativity continued from various sources such as when my mind wandered during my doodling with the brush on my Chinese calligraphy, listening to a song or even lifted from someone’s poignant line. Hence the themes are more varied. With this posting, poems written in 2021 has now ended. It took me quite a while to finish this backlog.

To save myself from grief of titling each poem, I had grouped them into one place in chronological order.

#1

This was inspired by the wall clock as I laid in the guest room… I translated it to have a Mother-Goose flavor.

1 的嗒嘀答牆鐘聲 Tick-tock, tick-tock goes the wall clock,
2 夜長不絕敲夢影 Incessant and the night is long. My dreams being harried to no end!
3 皎月依窗笑弄人 Moon by the window - teasing me with its brightness,
4步出噓趕到天明 Out I went hollering and chasing it till dawn.

1 The first four characters are just the variant forms of the onomatopoeia.
2 “incessant throughout the long night, knocking at dream’s shadows”
3 “the bright moon leaning on the window jeering at man”
4 “stepping out to hiss and chase it till the sky turns bright”

Tuesday, November 30, 2021

#2

This was inspired by a walk at Redondo Beach. The photos did not capture what I saw. The reflection of the sun on the horizon made it as if it was a sunrise.

夕陽西下水中升 The sun is setting but the one in the water rose,
不刻二日兩相迎 Too soon in welcome twain shall be.
殘光一道銀波捲 A dying ray. Silvery waves up in curls,
莫歎夜臨日再明 Sigh not as night cometh. Brightness once more, tomorrow be.

Monday, November 29, 2021

#3

Doodling with my brush while listening to “Life Is A Precious Thing”.

1 雲飛烟散花去時 The clouds are gone. The mists dispersed. Time too for flowers to go,
2 綺夢長短總一辭 Beautiful dreams, whether be short or long, one has to bid adieu.
3 追憶舊情仍未別 Old memories I still could not part,
4 南柯醒後已太遲 Awakened from the Dream of the Southern Bough. All’s too late.

4 https://jeffinous.blogspot.com/2011/02/dream-of-southern-bough-chinese-antz.html

Wednesday, December 1, 2021

#4

It has been many years since I wrote a poem in English because I was happy as I had found the light of my life. I was editing some photos while listening to “The West of the Sun”. I was overcame with nostalgia and felt sad and happy at the same time. Then suddenly, all this came…

West of the Sun

I don’t have a multi-million yacht nor a Learjet,
But I have you,
To sail and fly to realms beyond this mortal world.
And if a tear were shed,
It would be one of joy in having a lifetime spent with you.
And if this were nothing more than a dream,
Then wake me up not.
And if for some reason,
This spell was broken,
I will be at the West of the Sun,
Waiting in eternity for thee.

Saturday, December 4, 2021

#5

This was inspired by as I corrected someone’s homework and essay that I had assigned.

1 火雲四濺夜傍織 Fiery clouds splashing everywhere knitting the night together,
2 纖絲柔捲去顏色 Colors curling in the soft delicate filigrees too soon will fade away.
3 歸鳥現何紅塵靜 Where now? Are the noisy roosting birds in this quiet mundane world?
4 伸手五指笑相識 Smiling at my outstretched hands to the fingers that I know.

4 Total darkness had descended. Fingers on my outstretched hand could not be seen but I know that they are still there.

Thursday, December 9, 2021

#6

This was inspired by this photo where the sunset clouds looked like castles in the sky. This was taken on the beach at the Hilton Waikoloa Village, 15 Nov 2021

夕陽飛霞胭脂紅 The setting sun and pink colored clouds in flight,
星夜漸臨與誰逢 With whom does the slow approaching starry night meet?
銀波微縐漁舟岸 Silvery waves knitting in frown upon fishermen’s boats,
天上浮城雲烟夢 Up in the sky floats the cloud castle of dreams.

Friday, December 10, 2021

#7

While doodling the first four characters of the first line came to mind…

1 四海五湖已更改 The four oceans and the five lakes had already changed,
2 日月星辰依舊在 The sun, the moon, the stars and the constellations are still in place.
3 扭轉乾坤事何難 How difficult it is for the world be turned into a topsy-turvy place?
4 明朝東風仍吹來 After all, the next morning the East Wind will still be blowing.

1 Another term for old China because there are four known oceans and five lakes to boot.

4 Like Zephyr, the east wind is a sign of spring

Monday, December 13, 2021

#8

This was inspired by the song, “Southern Nights” that was blaring away in the mall as I did my daily walk, away from the rain,

Southern Nights

Songs of old,
Sounds of long ago.
Southern Nights,

In my twilight.

A toast for thee,
And one for me.

Southern Nights,
Our twilight.

Tuesday, 14 December 2021

#9

This was inspired when I was awakened by the falling rain but could not get any idea other from the first line but finally completed in January of next year.

1 滴水流聲難夢時 It’s hard to dream when the sounds of water are dripping and flowing,
2 雨淋嘉州漲秋池 The Californian rain is filling autumn reservoirs to the brim.
3 七年旱日一夜盡 Seven years of drought vanished in one night,
4 靜聽甘露作詩詞 In serenity, I listened to the sweet falling dew and compose a poem.

4 Rains to the parched lands are like sweet dew manna to a farmer.

Tuesday, December 14, 2021

#10

This was inspired by the song, 高山流水, a zither piece.

1 青山流水竹林紫 Mountain green, flowing waters and the bamboo forest in purple,
2 紅葉凋盡菊香黃 Red leaves are withering and fragrant chrysanthemums in yellow.
3 黑夜漸臨萬彩烏 A myriad colors blackened as night slowly approaches,
4 玉兔凌空飛霜白 And when the Jade Rabbit rises, frost in flying white.

1 There are pine trees and bamboo growing in the mountains. And yes, there are bamboos that are blue or purple in color! Namely, the Bambusa chungii and Himalayacalamus hookerianus,

2 Obviously, this refers to the red maple leaves. Chrysanthemums bloom during autumn.

4 The jade rabbit lives in the lunar palace with the Goddess of the moon and hence a poetic term for the moon. When one thinks of jade, one normally associates with the green color. This is not so for the ancient Chinese. The most sought after color is known as the mutton fat color 羊脂白玉. The green color became popular during the late Ching period because the Empress Dowager, Tzu Hsi loved the green variety.

Friday, 17 December 2021

#11

It was 4:30am, alone with my desktop video game and listening to some night music. Words in the first line came waltzing in…

1 楓林葉落碎花魂 Maple forest leaves are dropping, breaking souls of flowers asunder,
2 寒谷湖靜水月銀 The valley is cold and the moon in the lake waters in silvery calm.
3 玉杯淒愁經已盡 Desolate bitterness had long gone from the jade cup,
4 霄漢星河漸西沉 And Heaven’s river of stars dip slowly into the west.

5 五更啼雞驚夢醒 The crowing at the hour of the fifth had dashed all dreams,

6 東閣牆影向誰問 Long shadows from the East Tower came casting with questions.
7 一遍寂寥風無答 The wind has no answer in this stretch of desolation,

8 千思萬情蓋紅塵 A thousand thoughts, a myriad feelings engulfing my mundane world.

3 Chinese prefer their wine to be temperature hot and thus it mean that the wine had gone cold.

5 A Chinese hour is equivalent to two hours. The first watch starts at 6pm, the third watch is midnight and the fifth watch at 5am.

8 The original is “A thousand thoughts return to the bosom, covering the mundane world”.

Thursday, December 30, 2021

#12

Doodling on my calligraphy…

1 十里亭外千里野 Beyond the ten-mile station is a thousand miles of wilderness,
2 九重天上萬星斜 Up in the nine tiered Heaven, a myriad stars in slant.
3 四海五湖作我家 The Four Seas and Five Oceans is my home,
4 六月三友仍不捨 The Three Friends of Winter in June still in togetherness.

1 Relay stations are spaced apart for government relays. Those living near are required to maintain horses so that messages can be passed onto the capital in a day.

2 It is believed that there are nine layers of heaven.

3 These are the number of waters in China proper, extended to mean the empire of the old.

4 歲寒三友 https://en.wikpedia.org/wiki/Three_Friends_of_Winter

Friday, December 31, 2021

Cabrillo Way Marina Inspired

2021 had been a prolific year for me in poetry writing. The spurt of activity came mainly from my vacation in Hawaii in November and upon coming home. This creativity continued, especially from my daily afternoon walks on the Cabrillo Way Marina. When the days were sunny, bright light shimmered from the faraway waves and yet the ocean at times could be enshrouded in foggy.

To save myself from grief of titling each poem, I had grouped them into one place in chronological order.

#1

1 滄滄銀海秋日望 Vast is the silvery ocean, looking at the autumn sun,
2 微寒風過皺波浪 Mildly cold, the wind knotted the waves.
3 小港船艇醉無憂 Drunken are the boats in the small marina with nary a care,
4 遙遠楓林接天黃 The faraway maple forest receives Heaven in yellow.

3 The boats are empty and still, as if in drunkenness.
4 Red is not the only color of withering maple leaves.

Wednesday, 24 November 2021

#2

銀湖斜陽照 The slanting sun upon the silvery lake,
孤舟漁翁搖 A lone fisherman rowing his boat.
遁水朝天遠 Fleeing by waters, the sky so far away,
紅塵休閑少 Carefreeness in the mundane world is way too rare.


Friday, 3 December 2021

#3

風大浪聲巨 Strong is the wind and waves surging high,
海鷗現何去 Where now are the sea gulls?
夕陽漸西沉 Slowly into the west is the setting sun,
夜蘭夢相聚 And when night is deep wouldst dreams meet.

Friday, 3 December 2021

#4

Inspired by the characters "夜闌靜" from the previous poem.

今宵夜闌靜 Late into tonight when all is quiet,
月寒照無情 Heartless is the moon shinning coldly.
風盡花香絕 And when the wind has died, so will the fragrance of flowers,

萬杯亦何寧 Even endless cups wouldst tranquility besotted.

Friday, December 3, 2021

#5

1 港內水靜秋日船 Calm are the autumn waters in the marina where boats are,
2 海外波微銀光遠 And where yonder the ocean is, wavelets rippling in silver.
3 逍遙十里隔紅塵 Carefree or ten miles away from the mundane world,
4 洞在一步踏桃源 The cave to where the Peach Blossom Spring is but one step away.

4 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Peach_Blossom_Spring

Wednesday, December 8, 2021

#6

1 水攕秋日光奪目 Shattered is the blinding light of the autumn sun upon the waters,
2 漁人暢朗歌一曲 What worries there are for the fisherman when in song?
3 如意逍閑世外間 Carefreeness as one wishes for, lies in realms beyond this world.
4 遙遠楓葉遍寒谷 Or just look yonder where red maple leaves don the simple valley.

4. 寒 means “poor” as in 寒窗, 寒舍, etc. for self-deprecation, “my cold window/abode” because too poor to buy firewood or coal to warm up the place. In turn, the meaning can be extended to mean life' simplicity. “red” is not in the original text but is implied.

Saturday, December 11, 2021

Catalina Inspired

 
2021 had been a prolific year for me in poetry writing. The spurt of activity came mainly from my vacation in Hawaii in November and upon coming home.  This creativity continued, especially from my daily walks by the cliffs facing Catalina Island. No matter how many times I see it, the scenery always change with the weather conditions of the day. Sometimes, cloudy and the Island had disappeared from view; on sunny days but it is enshrouded in fog or in summery conditions, both the sky and Island have unobstructed views.

To save myself from grief of titling each poem, I had grouped them into one place in chronological order.

#1

1 海上船舟逍遙渡 Upon the ocean, a boat crosses in carefreeness,
2 無憂開朗與誰訴 Nary a worry, but whom wouldst the cheerfulness be told?
3 若瞥蓬萊真面目 If the real face of Paradise is to be espied,
4 仙島不踏心已到 Even when not physically present, the heart is already there.

3 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Penglai

Monday, 22 November 2021

#2

It was a sunny day and the fluffy clouds were gorgeous. Catalina could be seen clearly as if it was just only a mile away instead of 26.

1 滄滄銀海天地縫 Heaven and Earth - sewn together by the vast silvery ocean,
2 眼前蓬萊總是夢 The paradise before me is but a dream.
3 願作白雲青山蓋 Rather white clouds over the green mountain tops be
4 莫為紅塵黄袍寵 Than to be the favorite of the yellow robed!

2 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Penglai

4 Yellow robes can only be donned by the emperor or by special dispensation.

Saturday, November 27, 2021

#3

Yesterday, the sky was clear and bright and Catalina could be seen clearly. Today, it had disappeared into the mists and fog of the ocean…

1 蓬萊曾經非異鄉 Once upon a time Paradise was no stranger,
2 劉郎而今醉人長 A perpetual drunkard, Master Liu is now.
3 失足已成千古恨 One wrong step begets regret of a thousand years,
4 雲烟一瞄斷心腸 Each time clouds and mists espied, a knotted pain in the heart.

Sunday, November 28, 2021

#4

1 清藍海水紫波浪 Ocean waters of purest blue and waves in purple,
2 秋日高升總一降 High is the autumn sun but will eventually set.
3 若得蓬萊真面目 If the real face of Paradise could be espied,
4 轉世胎脱永難忘 Even reborn, never wouldst I forget.

2 Even the best of health in one’s twilight years, death is imminent.

4 “Reincarnate and leaving the womb, eternally, difficult to forget”

Friday, 17 December 2021