Poems by Nguyen Thanh Thuong from Vietnam

Nguyen Thanh Thuong

Poems by Thanh Thuong from Vietnam

Her biography:

Her full name: Nguyen Thanh Thuong

A Teacher, and a Poet, too.

Date of birth: May 11, 1968

Living in: Hanoi

There have been many poems printed and published in newspapers and in literary magazines

Vice President of Vietnam Poetry Club

BIRTHDAY PRESENTS

Today is my birthday

Roses and chocolates are your presents

My poem praises our love

Written in loving purple ink just like at school

Your heart is full of love and gratitude

You bring about the shimmering sky and beautiful earth

Passionate, loving, deserted

Writing in haste just like in the military, under the moonlight.

The hesitant purple hue of crape myrtle flowers

Faithfully waiting for my love on the side of the road

Cicadas envy my rosy cheeks

They induce flamboyant flowers in bright red bloom.

Enthralled, I’m beaming

Sweet radiant sun rays looking at me

Oh our poetic love!

My diary, how many pages about you.

Our love is beautiful like a painting

Let the pink wind, white clouds, and the blue sky be our background!

My birthday in May, 2023

_____

ROSES AND CHOCOLATES

Roses and Chocolates Day

As usual, you brought me your gifts

A thousand times better than expected

It’s the beautiful scent of passionate love.

By the lake, full of early morning dews

Holding each other’s hands tight, we were walking together

Looking at some pair of swans

When did they commit to being a couple?

I pointed at something in the distance

You saw that there were the twin towers

They were always stable in spite of the wind

Just like our unshakeable love.

A million roses bloomed, romantic and beautiful

Valentine's day and many other days

It will forever be our burning love

Standing tall like the twin towers eternally!

Valentine’s Day 14th February

PURPLE SUMMER

What are you hiding in the sunshine today?

That purple clouds fill up the corners of your eyes

Full of red color with a sweet aroma

The wind blows just like singing a love song.

What are you hiding in your beautiful promises?

That butterflies and bees swarm passionately, so strange

Clouds are away and don’t cover the branches

The afternoon is late, still plenty of sunshine.

What do you hide from the silence of each night?

The wind stopped and I was lulled to sleep

The fragrance of the countryside came back seductively

Made us drunk in my loosening sleek hair

What are you hiding in the vast empty space?

My missing you vaguely and indescribably

My little heart fluttered again

The street in the season of love was filled with dreams.

The afternoon clouds still linger passionately

Our glances are more ecstatic and excited

Crape myrtle flowers are purple like our hearts in the chests

A passionate kiss with a promise to love you!

Hà Nội, 23th April, 2023

MY CHILDHOOD KITE

My kite sang in my childhood

I was eager to learn and dreamed of going to school

Summer came with my dear red flamboyant flowers blooming

Purple crape myrtle flowers on the road I was walking

From above, the songs of nightingales

Thin shirts and broken sandals

Straw hats, medicine shoulder bags

The winds blew the sideburns teasingly…

Mother and father were burned in the sun and drenched in the rain

Sweet potatoes and cassava for warming stomachs at lunch

The kite fluted to the sky

Lulling the hardworking people on their homeland fields.

Afternoon shadows fell on the side of the road

The surprising hammock at long nights where my mother lulled me

In a melodious high and low voice

The kite flute forever resounded beautifully like the sound of a musical instrument..

The moon shone all over the world

Sweet Hồng Hà, Đan Phượng, and Bá Giang

What a wonderful and beautiful childhood!

The kite brought poetry to me!

THE DRUM SOUND FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS RESOUNDING STILL

The sound of battle drums throughout history

After four thousand years, still retains its sacred soul

The S shape is always a united strip

Heroic women still loyally defend the country

Trưng Nữ flag on the riverbank in the past

Mê Linh land is still with their steps

Triệu Trinh Nương refused to accept her fate as a wife

Riding fierce waves to kill orcas to build a new regime

The nation’s history remains long forever

Bamboo shoots replaces old ones to continue their mission

Đặng Thùy Trâm didn’t balk in the fire of ammunition

In Quảng land, Mother Thứ's image is still imprinted.

Can’t count all the heroic women

Sacrificed to defend our sovereignty

In the fire of ammunition were their youth

Returned to earth with their pure souls.

Thousands of enemies poured over the border

Our fairies still marched along

Swept away the darkness they brought

When the enemies were defeated, our lullaby harmonized with our life!

Vietnamese Day of Poetry,

The 1st full moon of the lunar year, 

24th February, 2024

 THE SCENT AND COLOR OF MARCH

What do you hear in the scent of March?

When the scent merges with the wind

Red bombax ceiba flower petals are all over the sky

Pinky white clouds covering the grass nearby.

What do you hear in the scent of March?

Virgin white grapefruit petals and nostalgia

That scent permeates every breath

Missing you since a very long time ago

What do you hear in the scent of March?

Purple flowers from the bead trees fall and blend with the grass

My shoes unintentionally led to a small path

Touched my memories and I missed our past days and months.

Oh, the month of March burns forever inside me

I always recall our memories

Oh my love! You used to be in wartime

Now you return to the scent of March again!

Hà Nội, 26th, February, 2024,

A beautiful memory

(Translated into English by Tran Quynh Hoa)