Chủ Nhật, 26 tháng 2, 2012
ASIAN MORNING WESTERN MUSIC / JOHN F. KENNEDY / a poem by THE PHONG
Asian Morning Western Music /
poems by The Phong .
This Edition , Jan. 2012 - HCM City
Asian Morning Western Music and other poems
Dai Nam Van Hien Books , Saigon 1971
J O H N F I T Z G E R A L D K E N N E D Y
a poem by THE PHONG
translated from the vietnamese by ĐÀM XUÂN CẬN
IN a whole sad evening
I wander
casting a glance at the sea
and the horizon
counting every quarter of an hour
while the sun appears and dissappears
on the wawes
my secret sadness
refuses to go
I wonder whether there is any meaning for life
in the wood Our Lady with innumerable pebbles
in this place I find no solace at all
the sea today is sad like me
furious wawes do not cease rolling
and breaking on lonely rocks
and rocks seem to be shattered to pieces of russet color
thousands of years ago
at the beginning of the universe
problably this hill was part of the sea ,
with billows roaring
after so long a time
now a lone man
I walk slowly , sadly
up and down this place
visit friends and inanimate things ;
and then depart once more ...
Sitting in the evening shop waiting to be served
looking at nude pictures on the wall
and hearing Western music
suddenly I realize
Christmas is coming soon
in this war-ravaged land
the hostess
after collecting money
leaves the counter
goes into the kitchen
to prepare roast fish
yestarday the duty cook
went to the training camp
women replace men in all matters
exept for being husbands
I begin to weep
over my lonely state
o my love
are you happy away from me
today
for dinner
I will eat more
thinking of your beautiful hands and body
I ' ll smile in tears
in the future of civil we all have burning pains
let us turn away
not to see the obscene scene
a naked GI
shows his contempt for prostitutes
by going out of the bathroom
without a dress on
a wife turns away , looks at her husband and waits
for him to react
head bowed
he goes on sipping his soft drink
aware that the blue-eyed soldier
thinks all Vietnamese women are keen on seeing naked bodies
in fact his beastly attitude should only shame
compatriots of hero Abraham Lincoln
whose statue was carved on a great mountain
as for me I remember the photo of John F. Kennedy
hero of the world with floating hair
assassinated not long ago
since the Vietnamese youths
night after night ,
looks at his picture hung over the bed
feel respect and love for him
champion of New Frontier Policy
o the obscene jingle full of pretty things
only makes prostitutes laugh
professionally
I will never forget the morning
I came to the cage- like shop
surrounded by wires for fear of terrorist activities
there were four at the table
three Americansand a Viet woman
they seemed to be gallant like Europeans
I sincerely thought so
until the little waiter brought a small plate full of cheese
he stuttered in front of an American ,
" she orders this
gentleman
why you shake your head ? "
not knowing what had happened !
the Viet prostitute went on laughing and talking
even after she admitted she had ordered this extra thing .
her lover still shook his head.
I felt sorry although characteristic of a leading nation in the world
the American woman has her own purse even after she is married
this Vietnamese woman , the prostitute turned temporary
and profitable wife
has no money and has begged for a breafast in vain
The memory of the GI opening the door
of the bathroom to let woman appraise his body aches me
for him Amarican simply means this miserable husband
with gold-rimmed spectacles who
walks in the direction of the GI
and speaks softly as if saying prayers
I at first take him to be a pimp
but after the quarrel breaks out
I understand the weeping woman in his legitimate wife
one afternoon
she had left Saigon for the fresh sea air
but only to feel all the humiliation of her people
After the GI gets out to consult hids friends
on how to right his grevious wrong
ha walks in
the red cap on his head
losing his arrogance he says softly
" I am sorry
I ' m really sorry
please accept my apologies "
the a firm handshake with he husband
as an acknowledgement of friendship
like the handsahke insignia printed on aid bags ;
" I am sorry
for thinking all Viet women are prostitutes
and dollars could buy everything ".
Still another story
every time the interpreter goes on leave
he sees on the highway
a love-starved GI simply brandishing his dollar coin
to find woman he could go ahead with
In my war-torn land
every night
flares shines bright in every corner of the country
deafening sounds of artillery disturb further
uneasy sleeps of war-weary people
never have I found the image of any man more shinning than
John Fitzgerald Kennedy ' s
now his image
fades out as bubbles ,
on the immensity of water
the wind in his hair
he seems to weep .
At the J.F. Kennedy Square in Saigon
the man whose wife was mistaken as a prostitute
of J. F. Kennedy 's nationality
cannot find back his bitter tears
Christmas night
stars are shinning brightly
on the Saigon Basilica
evrything is shrouded in the fog of shame
war
and
war ...
Cap Saint Jacques , South Vietnam
21 st , December , 1965 .
THEPHONG
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( from ASIAN MORNING WESTERN MUSIC - poems by THE PHONG .
First published by DAI NAM VAN HIEN BOOKS , Saigon 1971 .
This Edition , Jan. 2012 - Ho Chi Minh City - p. : 30 - 36 )
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