A CAT’S LIFE (After Su Tung Po)

In my garden the flowers

are dead. Clouds

gather for snow. Wind

shakes the branches.

My cat steps to a window,

and wonders where mice go. 

He will never know.

Perhaps he blames me.

I can only give him sympathy.

The grass is now yellow,

and the willows have

lost their leaves.

Then suddenly sparrows dart

from a tree. They look

tasty, and my cat can

wish. But today,

he will eat from his dish. 

WINTER APPROACHES (After Mei Yao Chen)

Unpleasant things crawl

from their holes,

as if they and I have

now switched roles.

A leaf blows in the wind

like a petal from a dead rose.

The moon is a mystery.

It’s as dim as a paper lantern,

hanging like an ornament

from a paper tree.

I have lost my way.

Stars speak of coming snow.

Nothing in that sky

lights a path for me.