sewing a quilt
I prick my finger ...
how imaginary
this thin life is,
yet, also very real
Naomi Beth Wakan
Chinese Translation (Traditional)
縫一件刺繡時
我刺了我的手指 ...
這種脆弱的生活
多麼虛幻
但是，也很真實
Chinese Translation (Simplified)
缝一件刺绣时
我刺了我的手指 ...
这种脆弱的生活
多么虚幻
但是，也很真实
Bio Sketch
Naomi Beth Wakan is the inaugural Poet Laureate of Nanaimo (2013). She has published over 50 books. Her poetry books include Sex after 70 and other poems and And After 80… (both from Bevalia Press) and Bent Arm for a Pillow
(Pacific-Rim Publishers). Naomi is a member of The League of Canadian
Poets, Haiku Canada and Tanka Canada and is the Inaugural Honorary
Ambassador for the BC Federation of Writers. She lives on Gabriola
Island with her husband, the sculptor, Elias Wakan. www.naomiwakan.com
This sewing metaphor for life is visually effectively established between the two parts of the tanka, and the thematically and emotionally dialectical statement in the lower verse adds psychological depth to the tanka.
ReplyDeleteNaomi's "sewing a quilt" tanka reminds me of the following remark:
A quilt is a curious creation. It begins its life as a thought. An image is formed; a pattern is devised; a plan is invented. The quilter maps out how it will all come together.
-- Ed Belliard