English Original
grip of fear ...
even folding laundry
leaves me breathless
Lorraine Pester
Chinese Translation (Traditional)
恐懼不安 ...
甚至折疊衣物
都讓我喘不過氣來
Chinese Translation (Simplified)
恐惧不安 ...
甚至折叠衣物
都让我喘不过气来
Bio Sketch
Being curious and staying open to possibility is Lorraine Pester’s way of keeping her haikai fresh. She shies from no topic that presents itself. Her deliberate interactions with birds while dog walking is a frequent theme. She lives with her husband and Abbey schnauzer in south Texas.
The buildup to the last line is visually and emotionally poignant, and with the tone-setting word, "even" (in L2), the concluding word, "breathless" (in L3) not only enhances this feeling of fear (in L1), but also successfully conveys a kind of fragility, physical and emotional, within the speaker.
ReplyDeleteLorraine's heartfelt haiku reminds me of the following remark:
"We are fragile creatures," and it is from this weakness, not despite it, that we "discover the possibility of true joy."
― Desmond Tutu, The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness "in a Changing World"