(Number eleven in a series of transformations of Wang Wei's River Wang
poems.)
A River Transformed XI: After Wang Wei's Huazi Ridge (2)
Between Ridges, Canyons
A raptor soars above empty lands,
a speck against the clear desert sky,
species unidentifiable -
empty except for tower, post and pole
along distant ridges and the march
of house and trailer up ever steeper slopes.
The bird, unfettered, dives towards prey
only he and turkey buzzards can see.
I watch, uncertain of the difference
between hawk, falcon and kite.
Our lunch sits untouched, the iced tea
visited by hornets - or is it wasps?
Magpies squabble over the remnants
of a dead crow in a broken fire ant nest.
The literal translation from a web site:
Fly bird go no limit
Join mountain again autumn colour
Up down Huazi Ridge
Melancholy feeling what extreme
http://www.chinese-poems.com/ww2.html
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