ASIAN MORNING WESTERN MUSIC / UPON THE DEATH OF WRITER NHẤT LINH / a poem by The Phong .

Asian Morning  Western Music  /  poems by  THE PHONG
This Edition ,  Jan.   2012  - HCM City.



        UPON THE DEATH OF WRITER NHẤT LINH *                                       
                              a poem  by  THE PHONG                                  
                       translated by ĐÀM XUÂN CẬN


 When  I was under twenty ,
              it was not long ago
Picking a red ,
              red rose
             I was praising you as a great writer of us all
Standing by  myself amidst the soft ,
            cool air of a  Hanoi autumn
I let my soul fellow the footsteps of our heroes
O how I wished  then
             to be like DŨNG  in Two Friends
When I was  twenty
             I lived in the fashion of your heroes


Time passed ...   and yes ,
             quickly than any of us could imagine
Your image no longer brightened our souls
Your image is a dim as a still like painting

Then came one afternoon
Dressed in smart clothes
 I took a seat and ordered
          a morning  cup of coffee

Angry with  myself turned a bourgeois
           who knew how to spend money
I looked for a daily
           stared dismally into space and indulged in day -
         dreams
Hearing the sweet sounds of music by those
          who crossed the Pacific Ocean years ago
What do Asians think of
          surrounded by waste land ?
Suddenly something struck at my head cool as a needle
Writer Nhất Linh  committed  suicide
       " swallowing  poison on the  7th day of the 7th month this year ".

Reading his biography on newspapers and periodicals
I had to frown at distortions ,
          yes ,
          cruel distortions
Aimed at him and Asian literature as well
( Sure
          criminal minded persons
           could not undesrtand a damn thing about  us ).

I must  put down the cup of coffee
           on table
           thingking of you
           who had led this world
           forever and forever

I decide
          this volume of poetry .
          should contain only   UPLIFTING POEMS 
          and  sacred numbers -  let us remember well :
           " the  7th day  of the 7th month in 1963
              the 49th  day after his death  " .

He who lies in the grave
          has  the power on the destiny of the living .
    []

Saigon ,  Aug . 15 ,  1963
THE PHONG .

( from ASIAN MORNING WESTERN MUSIC  / poems by THEPHONG.
 First publihed by   Dai  Nam Van Hien Books ,  Saigon 1971 .
This Edtion  , Jan . 2012   -    Hồ Chí Minh City   ; P. 70 - 72 ).
---------.
*  NHẤT LINH  ( real name  NGUYỄN TƯỜNG TAM    b. 1906 -  d. 1963  Saigon )  was a great writer.
     Apart from his lasting literary fame ,  the real sign of greatness lies in his suicide in protest  against 
     dictator Ngô Đình Diệm 's dictator  . (  Translator ' s note  - 1963 ).