A poem in Vietnamese by Phạm Hiền Mây
Translator: Nguyễn Thị Phương Trâm
mum mum I can not breathe
mid one life this appalling plead
be the next life indeed
born again no, not of this land
as feral birds not man
oblivious to poverty
wings wide forever free
(better than) a stream cut off by rotting trees
(a heart) in blinding waves of agony
forgive me please for letting go
I’m sorry mum
mum… .
(October 2019)
LỜI CUỐI…
con không thở được mẹ ơi
tiếng kêu bi thiết giữa đời trần ai
nếu còn thêm nữa kiếp mai
xin thôi đừng tiếp đầu thai chốn này
thà như muông thú chim bày
hồn nhiên no đói ăn mày trời không
tự do cánh sải mênh mông
hơn dòng lạc củi rêu sông nước tù
đớn đau lòng khói sóng mù
thứ tha con đứa buông phù thế rơi
con xin lỗi mẹ
mẹ ơi… .
Phạm Hiền Mây, the poet born in 1971 in Saigon, Vietnam. The prolific poet speaks, thinks, sleeps, and dreams in Kanji, Lục bát, six-eight syllables. Her poetry can be accessed through all platforms, including Facebook, Amazon, and local and international websites.
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.
Nguyễn Thị Phương Trâm 
i feel the pain and resignation of these words. not all of us can keep up the fight all the time. and sometimes, holding on just makes it more painful instead of letting go
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Yes and yes, letting go for me have lasted a lifetime.. If I may be the specimen of example, then I survived half of my life through denial. Trying to prove I am worthy of living. Letting go for me is still not an easy task. Thank you for your empathy my friend. Happy and peaceful day to you. 🥰
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i totally understand. enjoy the day! 🙂
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❤
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Beautiful in the naked honesty of the struggle. We all can relate, but thank you for putting this part of our journey into lovely prose. 💕
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You are welcome, thank you for reading and sharing a bit of yourself my friend. 🥰
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