A poem in Vietnamese by Vũ Ngọc Giao
Translator: Nguyễn Thị Phương Trâm

heels tapping

a stallion itching for the road

the trees, silent . drooping shadows 

watchful of the alleyways , late in the dark ..

.

the sudden overwhelming ascending fog 

a disjointed song

slipping from someone’s lips

.

the horizon lopsided

We’re drunk to the last drop

a life off-kilter

.

lashes lifted, eyeful of stars

the night wide open

the scent of a breeze

.

heels tapping

a stallion in earnest for the road

the shadows, silent . the drooping trees

the deserted road , abandoned ..

.

March 2021

—

GÕ CHÂN NGỰA PHỐ

* với Ngô Đình Hải

.

gõ chân

ngựa muốn lên đường

cây im . bóng rũ

ngó phường phố , khuya ..

.

sương rơi bất chợt đầm đìa

lan man khúc hát

chực lìa khỏi môi

.

ta say nghiêng ngửa đất trời

nâng ly nốc cạn

một đời lao đao

.

ngẩng lên mắt chợt đầy sao

đêm mênh mang

cánh gió nào ngát hương

.

gõ chân

ngựa nhớ phố phường

bóng im . cây rũ

con đường vắng , thênh ..

---

Vũ Ngọc Giao, the Vietnamese musician and poet born 1951, My Tho. A former student Petrus Ký Sài Gòn (1961 – 1968), an alumnus of the Faculty of Philosophy, the University of Literature Saigon (1968 – 1970), he is the founder of Phu Nhuan Guitar Club, Saigon. His poetry is published on many literary websites. A few familiar songs: Looking back at my life, The man with sad eyes (a poem by Đỗ Trung Quân), His return on a rainy night, The July rain…

Nguyễn Thị Phương Trâm, the blogger, poet, and translator, was born in 1971 in Phu Nhuan, Saigon, Vietnam. The pharmacist currently lives and works in Western Sydney, Australia.