One Man's Maple Moon: Midnight Train Tanka by Richard St. Clair

English Original

slipping back to sleep
the rumble
of the midnight train
on its routine run
a lullaby of steel and fire

Gusts, 23, Spring/Summer 2016

Richard St. Clair


Chinese Translation (Traditional)

我再次入睡
依照它的日常班表
午夜火車
的隆隆聲
是一個鋼鐵和火的搖籃曲

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

我再次入睡
依照它的日常班表
午夜火车
的隆隆声
是一个钢铁和火的摇篮曲


Bio Sketch

Richard St. Clair (b. 1946) has been writing tanka for over 15 years. His work has appeared in Gusts and Atlas Poetica publications as well as online. He is also a serious composer of classical music with over 120 works to his credit. He lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.