Here’s something random that jumped out of me the night before last, as I was sitting idly in the dining room, in front of my sister’s laptop, looking out the French doors and watching the day die… I figured it could be my July contribution. And for August, I’m going to have something revolutionary. See, the story goes…*deep breath*…my sisters and I won scholarships to participate in the Irish week at the summer music camp at the Augusta Heritage Center in West Virginia. So I’m going to write something little every day, about my experiences, and type it all up when we get home.

This is just something I wrote awhile back after watching the new Chronicles of Narnia movie. I haven't edited it, and its really just me thinking aloud--on paper. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy it. The Chronicles of Narnia are probably my most favorite books on the planet. There are so many beautiful messages in them.

“Carrots and radishes.
Diddily-doe-diddily-dum.
Peppers and 'taters too.
Diddily-doe-diddily-do.
Broccoli and cauliflower.
Dumble-de-dum-de-oh!
Onions! Tomatoes!
Dumblydeer!
And a bright orange pumpkin just for you!”

The lint broom and
broken pink dustpan
contemplate
the linoleum
to the sound of the
spins
and sighs
of the washer.

This is my translation of a poem Wen Yiduo wrote as an elegy to his young daughter Wen Liying, who died in 1926. When I first translated it in the beginning of this year as one of the poems I hope to translate and compile into a book, I never could imagine how poignant it would be 6 months later.

Perhaps - Wen Yiduo

也許你真是哭得太累，
也許，也許你該睡一睡，
那麼叫夜鷹不要咳嗽，
蛙不要號，蝙蝠不要飛。

不許陽光撥你的眼廉，
不許清風刷上你的眉，
無論誰都不能驚醒你，

These scars that mark the countryside and mar the pretty view
Remind us of a harder time when all that man could do
Was fight to keep his homeland free, and save the joys he knew

The crumbled trenches and white crosses that mark where soldiers lie
Painfully remind us of the days when our boys died
In honor of their sacred land and sunlit native skies

The echo of the cannon boom still rings in many ears
And remembered is the painful wait for the news that we all feared
To hear of death of those we loved and those that we held dear

Ok, I’m scrambling to get something together before these last few precious days of May slip past us. And I’m only just getting this up now! Life has been crazy here for the past few weeks. First Communions. The end of school. Confirmations. Formals. House-cleaning. Guests. Stray kittens. Retreats. Movie-making. Yeah, you name it, we’ve done it. So . . . I’ve taken a bit of a writing absence while I’ve been busy living. Which is a good thing anyway. We can all afford to live a little. It’s the best thing for writing, actually. In case y’all didn’t know.

“Help me,” he moaned, thrashing in his sleep. “Save me! Save us! Take them too! Don’t leave them! No!” He ended with a high pitched wail that set all of the neighborhood dogs to barking.

His eyes flew open, but he didn’t move. He stared at the ceiling for a moment, but didn’t really see it. His mind was lovingly caressing two dear, wonderful faces. Faces he would never see again. He began to sob.

Then, swiftly, he got out of bed and began to dress. Black pants, shirt, socks, and shoes– he didn’t even think about the color he was choosing. It just seemed right.

“When the west wind blows
We fly upon its wings
Escaping forever those evil foes.
When all the land will sing.
Listening to the lands beyond.
With it’s bright eternal shores.
Music of which we are fond.
Can be heard through those doors.
The gates of the skies shall open wide.
And rain will fall down upon the earth.
In those halls we will abide.
And sit at the kingdom’s hearth.“