Lost

Once there was a guy who resigned from high office

Now there's one whose path was strayed...

Where to find a mountain cave of golden flowers

To listen to the pine trees singing, the waterfall lulling the night

Here, a path of grass and flower road

Raising a wine cup from a remote place

The human world submerged under the fading moonlight.

Sitting by a deserted stream, clouds blending in layers

Water rolling, clouds drifting

Oh, water rolling, clouds drifting...

A lonely swallow flying to the far horizon

The crescent moon dangling in the ky

A bank of willows drooping,

The moonlight shining on dreams.

Water rolling, clouds drifting

Oh, water rolling, clouds drifting...

The misty moon’s path, the sound of life’s silent melancholy.

That’s it, resigned to it,

Stopping by Life’s sideline.

Joy along with a smile, 

Suddenly seem like a fleeting cloud at the end of the sky.

The heart suddenly feels a gentle, sad longing: 

The earthly path is far faraway.

The shadow of time:

Blurred moss on the rocky wall.

Hearing the sorrow rising

White clouds... hesitantly drifting in the sky.

Feeling the sorrow rising

White clouds... hesitantly drifting in the sky.

by Yên Sơn

English translation by Vương Thanh, 01.2024