Trúc Anh
MOUNTAIN OPENS UP
Open up nine levels of sky
Echoing sound of bird singing in mount’s entrance
Bustle the late pear branch to blossom
which level that rain comes
which level that wind breaths
which level that light drunks
which level that cloud jostles
which level that rock falls
Crack that imprinted in mount’s heart
Crack in human’s heart
Which level carries the footstep’s desire on the sharp rock this
lateday?
…..
The village elders speak an inarticulate language of the
Kinh
Vietnamese’s heart is old bamboo
In the dawn, bamboo made houses, sharpened into stake
thicken the fence, chopped into strings that tight
Let the heirs create the shape of the milestone
Vietnamese’s heart is salty salt
The fountains meet river
The rivers flow along docks
The rooted trees
The leaves fall to forest
Despite the whirling whining wind
Crossing human race in a blink of an eye
Suffering could not diminish truthful loving
…..
Thin cricket’s sound strungs beads on rock
Droplet of dawn shiny wet of time
Tiny horse-belly road
Road just as a fingerprint
Your blue-eyes road
Road of tilting fermented leaf
My hamlet is in mountain’s deep
Rolling on and on from afar
Faded cold winter
But the leg that accustomed to you walks happily
If the stomach has fond of you then cold earth warm of words
Warm the mountain’s soul, forest’s soul
Warm the sound of the forebear
Rather stay arduous than abandon the land
Let hands of boys and girls warm when growing corn’s crop
Let elders sing happy words of everywhere[1]
Let children joyful with their reading task
I’ll wait for you at tall house entrance when festival comes
I’ll wait for you at mount’s entrance when festival comes
If cupid’s arrow has been shot then look for it in the vacant valley
Ruddy two cheeks smelled of corn flour
Let the deer send my love to you
love that I’ve kept inside since a spring once upon a time
…..
Red sunflower calls Tet holiday of Co Nhe Cha[2]
Hillful of white orchid longing aocom’s button line [3]
See a linseed hill and adore the hand that carries out the spinning
A flap of seven-spectrum dress yearns for buckwheat season that just take off
Forest fragrance is being balmy
Lotus blossoms upon pond’s surface and your flowering road
blossoms
May you not too far-off
Path of no human footprint, thick of fox trace
Smell of hundred years stays on the leaves of the pass
On patrol road there comes a laugh from the melted shroud of fog
Canhichi night with your voice singing [4]
Hey A Co, hey A Nhi…
Who brought our hamlet next to the fountain
Who helped our people opens up mountain sets up village
Canhichi soaks in the voice of a foggy night
A spring domain glances at me and smile in bashfulness
The virginity that you gave had embarrassed the guy[5]
Though my eye sight have tighted on you
Road back to guarding post is drunk of fog yeast
Road back to guarding post is fragrant of a lady’s aroma
Let the pure dream stormy in Pang Loi[6]
…..
Opens up ten levels of mountain
These days the forest filled with sound of gibbons obstreperously call each other
Productive season whispers in the border land
Rain is just enough for thrilling love
A whole loving domain cherishes the drunkish exultant
Out-of-nowhere abnormal wind gratingly scratches at the leaves invites them to play chase and catch
as if tens of thousand souls of grass and tree are joyful of a heroic forest festival
The light-thirst plankton fly straight to the lamp
searching for sublimation moment just to be then exploded in burning heat
A melody swishes
Boys and girls join the forest sound in punching beat
Grand parents’ gong told that Nation is the root,
Parents’ gong advise that country is the foundation
Successor’s gong avidly steps the foot step of expansion
May your hand grows crop, Mother’s hand carries out plant cuttings
Father’s axe cultivates so as the earth wound stop breaking and
exuding
May a thousand year the gun sound is absent from the border
So I can see a dawn when fruits blossom on your lips
…..
Open up millions of heart yearning in such domain
Forest’s trees don’t betray human
Border’s land doesn’t betray human
Harvests season flavoursomed of new glutinous
Gong beats impassioned with words…
[1] Traditional folk song of the Thai, Tho
[2] Traditional Tet holiday of the Ha Nhi celebrated in the end of January
[3] Translator note: ao com is the traditional shirt of Thai woman
[4] A matchmaker singing night of the Ha Nhi
[5] In the first days of a new year, unmarried girls of Ha Nhi are allowed to choose among the boys that they had seen at the festival to make love with. After that, she would then leave and go get married
[6] The river of Ha Nhi hamlet in the Apachai borderland’s crossroad, where the hero Tran Van Tho sacrificed himself for the peaceful and prosperity of the people
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