Occasional poetry No.1
1958
that spring, there was a terrible drought
no one could stop
the earth from cracking open
and spilling its shrivelled guts
mice jumped out of rice jars
not a single grain was harvested
but so as not to make the higher-ups lose hope
our considerate village headman
sent people out night after night
first to paint the
ground grass-green
then to paint it gold
SONG XIAOXIAN
Translated by Simon Patton
Poem of the
week:
http://china.poetryinternationalweb.org/piw_cms/cms/cms_module/index.php?obj_id=973&x=1
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About Andrew.Rate
I have worked at UWA since 1995, coming from New Zealand to take an appointment as Lecturer in the Soil Science group in the former Faculty of Agriculture. I completed my PhD, from Lincoln University in New Zealand, in 1991. If you really want to find out about work stuff go
here. In real life I love my wife, daughter and guitar. Occasionally, I wish I had chosen a career as a carpenter, counsellor or poet.