Translation of Pham Cong Thien's famous poem, Stanza #8

The following poem, taken from "Ngay Sinh cua Ran" and named "Bat Nhi" (Not Two):

 
 
Mười năm qua gió thổi đồi tây

Tôi long đong theo bóng chim gầy

Một sớm em về ru giấc ngủ

Bông trời bay trắng cả rừng cây

 

Gió thổi đồi tây hay đồi đông

Hiu hắt quê hương bến cỏ hồng

Trong mơ em vẫn còn bên cửa

Tôi đứng trên đồi mây trổ bông

 

Gió thổi đồi thu qua đồi thông

Mưa hạ ly hương nước ngược dòng

Tôi đau trong tiếng gà xơ xác

Một sớm bông hồng nở cửa đông.
 

It's a perfect encapsulation of the inner conflict of the time - the strife between East and West, the unrelenting discord, and the gentle, hard-won denouement at the end. In poetry, there is resolution!"

Chung Nguyen, Umass-Boston

From "Serpent's Day of Birth"

Over my homeland gently blew the winds

For over ten years winds blew across the western hills
I struggled to follow a scrawny bird's flying shadow
One early morning you came back with a lullaby
White clouds hung low over the forest trees

Now across eastern and western hills the winds blow
Over the homeland's parched meadowlands down below
In my dreams you still stand at the door 
While I stand upon a hill amidst the blooming clouds

The winds blew across the hills of pine in the fall
I left the country in the summer rain, going against the flow
I was pained by the rooster's plaintive crow
A rose was blooming in early morn at the eastern door

Wissai/NKBa'