Sunday, June 24, 2018

One Man's Maple Moon: Last Breath Tanka by Gabriel Bates

English Original

every time
I think this will be
my last breath
the sound of insects
stirs me

Gabriel Bates


Chinese Translation (Traditional)

每一次
我認為這將是
最後的一口氣
昆蟲的聲音
就攪動我的心

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

每一次
我认为这将是
最后的一口气
昆虫的声音
就搅动我的心


Bio Sketch

Gabriel Bates is a contemporary poet from Pittsburg, Kansas. His work has appeared in several journals, online and in print. Keep up with him at gabrieljbates.wordpress.com

1 comment:

  1. In Gabriel's existential tanka, the contrast between thoughts of death (Ls 1-3) and energy of life (L4) stirs not only the speaker's heart and mind (L5) but also the reader's emotion and reflection on life and death.

    His fine tanka reminds me of one of my haiku on a similar topic, one that is allusive to Emily Dickinson's poem:

    flies buzzing...
    a one-man funeral
    in my head

    VerseWrights, Dec 11. 2013

    ReplyDelete