Nature

Sung to the Air: "The Wanderer"

by Meng Chiao c. AD 790

Translated by Florence Ayscough and Amy Lowell (1921) · From Fir-Flower Tablets (1921)

Nature

Thread from the hands of a doting mother
Worked into the clothes of a far-off journeying son.
Before his departure, were the close, fine stitches set,
Lest haply his return be long delayed.
The heart--the inch-long grass--
Who will contend that either can repay
The gentle brightness of the Third Month of Spring.

✦ ✦ ✦

In the book: "composed by Su Wu in the time of the Emperor Wu of Han".

MLA

Chiao, Meng. “Sung to the Air: "The Wanderer".” Translated by Florence Ayscough and Amy Lowell. Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/meng-chiao/0/.

Chicago

Chiao, Meng. “Sung to the Air: "The Wanderer".” Translated by Florence Ayscough and Amy Lowell. Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/meng-chiao/0/.

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