English Original
Holocaust Memorial
from an ashen sky
snow keeps falling
and falling
on fallen snow
Runner-up, 2017 British Haiku Society Tanka Awards
Frank Dietrich
Chinese Translation (Traditional)
大屠殺紀念碑
從灰暗的天空
降下大雪
大雪一直下
在落雪上
Chinese Translation (Simplified)
大屠杀纪念碑
从灰暗的天空
降下大雪
大雪一直下
在落雪上
Bio Sketch
Holocaust Memorial
from an ashen sky
snow keeps falling
and falling
on fallen snow
Runner-up, 2017 British Haiku Society Tanka Awards
Frank Dietrich
Chinese Translation (Traditional)
大屠殺紀念碑
從灰暗的天空
降下大雪
大雪一直下
在落雪上
Chinese Translation (Simplified)
大屠杀纪念碑
从灰暗的天空
降下大雪
大雪一直下
在落雪上
Bio Sketch
Born
in Berlin, Frank Dietrich now lives in Düsseldorf, Germany, where he
works as an English teacher and private tutor. He studied English
literature in London (UK) and Germany.
... It has been said that if you want to win an Oscar, make a film about the Holocaust. So here in second place I settled on a poem about just that. It is not easy to write on such an emotive subject, or to write something original about it. But this poem succeeds in ways that are quiet, yet simply stunning. I will never forget 'ashen sky' and the snow falling on fallen snow in this desolate place. That image for me describes the nature of memory itself, and the repetition of 'falling' is haunting, and haunted. With its simple language, it echoes right into the silence of eternity ...
ReplyDelete-- excerpted from the judge's commentary, accessed at http://britishhaikusociety.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/RESULTS-OF-THE-BHS-AWARDS-2017-1.pdf