Monday, April 25, 2016

One Man's Maple Moon: Litany of Names Tanka by Brian Zimmer

English Original

empty beds
in the old house
at night
the furnace whispers
its litany of names

Gusts, 16, Fall/Winter 2012

Brian Zimmer


Chinese Translation (Traditional)

老房子內
的多張空床
夜晚時刻
暖爐低聲訴說
一連串的名字

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

老房子内
的多张空床
夜晚时刻
暖炉低声诉说
一连串的名字 


Bio Sketch

Brian Zimmer wrote from the banks of the Mississippi River in St. Louis, Missouri. His work had appeared in various international print and online journals. He took inspiration from a variety of sources, including the ancient Japanese poetic-diary (utanikki) and free-form, poetic "essay" (zuihitsu).
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1 comment:

  1. Chen-ou Liu, 劉鎮歐April 25, 2016 at 9:26 AM

    Through well-chosen phrases/images ("empty beds," "old house," and "litany of names"), this no-man, atmospheric tanka vividly depicts the effects of time's passage and its sentiment reminds me of the following haiku by Barbara Snow:

    as if this house
    might drift away
    cobweb moorings

    The Heron's Nest, 15:2, June 2013

    ReplyDelete