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THE WRITERS POST (ISSN: 1527-5467) VOLUME 9 DOUBLE ISSUE JAN 2007 JUL 2007
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MAI VAN PHAN __________________________________________
three poems by MAI
VAN PHAN translated by Do Xuan Oanh Stare me Tiny rain makes grass glossy.
Tender grass spreads to the foot of waves. Things follow one another to
change color, like dominos fall in the game. Grass leaves suck each peal of
bell since early. Resound in the pair of gloves, scarf and the woolen hat. …your eyes for the moon to shine… Moon spreads smoothly on wide
land. Land surface stays innocent under moon’s pressure. Like weals of riding
whip on the shoulder, whipping hard on my back. Wind. Wind suddenly brings the mane
off the sound of my hooves beats
into far away. …your eyes stagnate the color of creamy milk… The cup of hot milk and spoon
remain quiet. Smoke whiffs the season of prime rice. A whiff of autumn pond,
water hyacinth, bird nest, straw heap, water vase…A sound of bird cooing,
steamed meat, hedge, grain of coal… Drink water Lips touch the cup mouth and my body drops into space. Unbelievable The bee that flies in the
room is made of plastic or wood
? its variegated body full of
unfinished cut traces true, it has flown the sound of flapping wings
mild, ingenious. Must not believe in a bee I verify by small motions : 532 pages always full in the old book I cut fingernails, unclog the pipe try to report, try to sign, try to destroy documents… But it seems all animals in the house are manufactured from refuse
: the tricolor cat born from a batch of rag ? the fish swimming in the tank made from beer tin can ? the nightingale singing in the cage is a broken kettle
? the dog thrusting its head in my arm a roll of old
newspaper ? the ant herd patiently carrying bait a heap of sawdust
? The immortal mouth The mouth drifting over there surely is
from a dead person now on high now touching land surface. Has the bone of the mouth now melted into
dust ? Is it still dirty yellow or tarnished black in terra-cotta coffin
? But the mouth keeps moving gently and
lively now press tightly now smile generous. I put into the mouth phonics like clicking search for an web site As a result I feel dizzy I
got lost in an ambush ? Is
the software infected by virus ? Or
the grain of coal just fell into an ice slab ? … The mouth emits no sound only appears a dumb film sequence I had dubbed into it the sound of sticks
and canes, the sound of order, draft order… the sound of a person and even the sound of unison… The mouth keeps drifting Suffice it that
someone issues an idea.
MAI VAN PHAN The Writers Post &
literature-in-translation, founded 1999,
based in the US. VOLUME 9 DOUBLE ISSUE JAN 2007 & JUL 2007 Editorial note: Works published in this issue are simultaneously published in the printed Wordbridge magazine (ISSN: 1540-1723). Translation copyright © Mai Van Phan & The Writers Post. Nothing in this magazine may be downloaded, distributed, or reproduced without the permission of the author/ translator/ artist/ The Writers Post/ and Wordbridge magazine. Creating links to place The Writers Post or any of its pages within other framesets or in other documents is copyright violation, and is not permitted. |
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