A poem in Vietnamese by Tản Đà
Translator: Nguyễn Thị Phương Trâm
(Chữa thơ thi của sư cụ chùa Đống Liêm Nguyễn Xuân Dục ra đầu bài lấy vần “dơ”)
follow the elephant for their bagasse all the time
sucking pulp chewing dirt is no way a crime
tread light look carefully and you might catch a dime
for the lack of sweet juice add a squeeze of lime
on their tail so might as well take a whiff
all that left over what a waste what if
“Those who say that life is worth living at any cost have already written an epitaph of infamy, for there is no cause and no person that they will not betray to stay alive.” Sidney Hook
Ăn mía theo voi tiếng đến giờ
Vì chi biếng bã để trò dơ
Rón chân những chực khi vòi nhả
Rát lưỡi đành xơi cái ngọt thừa
Ấy đã theo đuôi thời phải hít
Còn đâu nên tấm nữa mà vơ!
Nghìn năm bia miệng là câu thế
Những khách ăn tàn đã biết chưa?
Tản Đà, the poet was born Nguyễn Khắc Hiếu on 19 May 1889 in Ba Vi, died on 7 June 1939 in Hanoi, Vietnam. He used both traditional Sino-Vietnamese forms and European influences and was a transitional figure between the turn of the 1890s such as Tú Xương and Nguyễn Khuyến and the “New Poetry” movement of the 1930s.
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 
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