the poem you’re coveting | Lê Vĩnh Tài

Sydney Harbour Bridge. Photography: Nguyễn Thị Phương Trâm

A poem in Vietnamese by Lê Vĩnh Tài
Translator: Nguyễn Thị Phương Trâm

the poem you’re coveting

you hang it up
you’re caressing and admiring it

you take it to bed

and it is the only cause of your
pain…

bài thơ
bạn ấp ủ nó

bạn treo nó lên
ngắm và vuốt ve

bạn ngủ với nó

và bây giờ
nó là điều duy nhất làm cho bạn buồn…
_____
JANUARY 2021

Lê Vĩnh Tài, the poet and translator born in 1966 in Buon Ma Thuot, Daklak, Vietnam. The retired doctor is still a resident of the Western Highlands and a businessman in Buon Ma Thuot.

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.

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By Nguyễn Thị Phương Trâm

There's magic in translating a body of work from one language to another.

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