Nguyễn Thị Bích Nga

A POEM FOR MY NIECE'S AND MY NEPHEW'S NEW HOUSE

(to Diem & Thu)

I bend down respectfully
In front of a roof which is higher than a roof
The mind is different from a normal thought.

People look at you by the mark
Inside and outside, which is better?
But at least you can affirm your characters.

Winds and rains will stop
In the heart of a young wife
Where has the gossip gone?

Congratulations to your new house
In which is full of laughters all the time
The mind is never black out.

MORNING
  NGUYEN ANH NONG

The sound of a trumpet woke me up
My hands and feet didn’t know what to do in the dark
A switch bursted out laughing
A pair of slippers sang the everlasting songs

I heard the rumbustious sound of young frogs
One… two… three… four… the stars were still up there
They were sleepy in the night sky
The young with their mouths still stained by milk
Decided to brave their difficult lives.

I was half sad, half happy with lights of moon and fans of wind
The dawn shone in my face and lips – a woken person
The fragant grass cleaned my undry and unwet feet
Suddenly a thought occurred as bright as the first sunlight
Made my flesh warm.

INSPIRATION WITH A STONE
    NGUYEN ANH NONG

Picking a stone in Chư Sê
I brought it back to Hà Nội
I feel my soul sobbing
And my heart beating softly

PORTRAIT
  NGUYEN ANH NONG

He’s -
The locked safe
Which many thieves desire
Only the bright moon
Can open his heart door.

He’s -
The big and old banyan-tree
Which children come to and giggle
Winging under the green branches
His strong roots stick to the village’s soul.

He’s -
The guy who is banished
Falls in love with the strippers
Hangs out with the fire-flies, the moon and the stars
Then, he is as merciful as the grass.

He’s -
Sunny
Windy
Lavish
Thrifty
A clear well
A blue mirror.

He’s -
The sage
His life is full of debt
Friends
Pull and drag
He walks carefreely.

A French war-ship at the bottom of Đà river
  NGUYEN ANH NONG

A French war-ship was discovered at the bottom of Đà river
It was fired and sunk by Uncle Ho's soldiers in 1951
Feeling grieved, it thanked the workers for dredging the river
Half of a century… and then it saw the blue sky for the first time
It was surrounded by the veterans, the new recruits, the workers…
Each of them looked at the war-ship with different mood.

In the spring morning of 2000
They collected the remains and brought them to somewhere,
scattering some rough bones on the floor,
scattering some rusted screws here and there,
scattering some silly ravens everywhere.

The giant crane – lifted the huge war-ship
like an old car carried a miserable road.
Then the green grass field greeted the guilty ship with its generosity.

The ship looked like a warrior with lots of wounds
It was lying on the grass, seeing the blue sky, and thinking…

NGUYE ANH NONG

Two Old Men
(the story of my Uncle and my Father)

Two old men with white hair,
The older told the younger:
"Tonight, just one night,
You sleep with me, right?"

The younger didn't understand
"Hey, no, I must come home!
And cook bran for the pigs!
Besides, my little grandson
He needs to sleep with me!"

After midnight, the older died.
Next day, the younger felt stunned,
And he was so regretful.
A bamboo cane in his hand was trembling.
He cried until there were no more tears.

Hearing “quý” bird singing songs in the night forest

         NGUYEN ANH NONG

- Queng quý giót...
- Queng quý giót...
*
A bird’s voice in the night
Made me startled
A bird’s voice or your voice
Called me in my dream?  
*
- Queng quý giót...
- Queng quý giót...
*
The dim moon was on the night forest
Whirlpools were spurting noisily
I lay down, hearing a bird’s voice
And my heart felt so sad.
*
I had more blankets
More nets, more mats than I needed
But I still asked myself
It seemed I missed something
“A warm breath
With the smell of lemon flowers
Some tangled hair
Covered my shoulders
A whispering voice
Made my long nights go fast”
*
- Queng quý giót...
- Queng quý giót...
*
Then a bird sang songs
And I heard it
Then I couln’t sleep
And I heard it…

Đà River, the friendship region

            NGUYEN ANH NONG

I
The man who had thrown the first stone to stop Đà River went back to his old place
What did the letter want to say to one hundred years later?
The mountains were standing giantly
The rivers were singing softly
You dipped in water, your lovely feet walked tenderly
I felt dazed in front of the white arundinaceous canes.

II

168 Russian – Vietnamese engineers and workers
168 wonderful hearts
168 pairs of arms in millions arms
The friendship was collected
Made Đà River be glittering.
III
Where was I-A-Ly?
It was full of hot hearts of the friendship
Where was Tà Pú?
We went up to the mountain areas eagerly.
The sounds of giggling echoed from there
Winds were blowing, clouds and smoke were hanging about people
Đà River raised – the current was running slowly
From the upper river, waterfalls and whirlpools began
Yellow leaves were falling down in the heavy rains.
IV
This afternoon why I called you: “Đà River!”
The sun united with the moon
We breathed with our young chests
A small white stork was flying slowly in a distance.