ummer

This morning, I stood in front of the mirror.

Were my cheeks rosy-pink or was it the autumn sun’s glow?

Although, my heart troubled with the long road and windy day,

Poetry bursts with nostalgia for the bygone days of passionate love!

The heron’s wings had been lost in the borderland.

Still, the golden autumn sunlight forever sparkling on the ocean.

Looking back at hometown, I see shadows of mountains.

But where’s the red Jacaranda branch,

with white cloud embracing it in the river’s reflection.

Huệ Thu

Translated by Vuong Thanh, 2023