Du Fu Visits Anne Yun Poem by Daniel Brick

Du Fu Visits Anne Yun

Rating: 5.0


A Fantasy for Anne Yun

The moon tonight is the color of
drenched carnations. The magpies
flap and chatter briefly when candles
are lit, dispelling early evening shadows,
creating a pool of creamy illumination.
Such is the reality of my place in time
as I greet you, Anne Yun, in your reality.
I am your honored ancestor, you are
my beloved progeny. I am so grateful
you remember me as a poet and scholar,
and not that weary wanderer of endless,
dust-clouded frontier roads, an imperial
messenger delivering countless letters
from countless imperial courtiers
to obedient soldiers in countless camps.
I have no thirst for victory or power.
I have no stake in military glory. Still
it is for these things I live and work.
I have a genius for friendship, but I am
always saying good-bye to friends. I have
a longing for family life, but my wife weeps
and ages alone, and I have never seen
my youngest daughter. Tell me, was my life
not a useful life, a life lived for others?
Did I not serve faithfully the army that
faithfully defended our borders and passed
forward through time this magnificent land
for you and your contemporaries? When I think
of you, your lives in a prosperity I never knew,
in a peace I never enjoyed, I am content and sleep
an ancestral sleep of fulfilled dreams. And tonight
all my dreams are focused on you, Anne Yun,
my descendant, my distant daughter. You carry
within the ancient impulse to write poems. How do
your poems reach me? I do not know. They do not
arrive as words written in graceful calligraphy
on precious parchment. They are a presence,
rather than things. Sometimes I know them as
as a perfume which sweetens the air, whose essence
I breathe in and out with pleasure. Other times
your poems appear in the fumes of of southern wine,
and I drink deeply of its inspiration. On a few occasions,
I have heard one of your poems recited by a soldier
at a camp fire, and his comrades are quiet and composed...

The last time I saw Li Bai was a night of gentle beauty.
The autumn air was criss-crossed by warm and cool breezes.
The sky was stretched across the dome of heaven
like an immense roll of silk. The silence gave way to songs
sung by youths and maidens. I complained about the injustice
of our lives. Li Bai smiled and poured more wine. 'My friend,
we may be just madmen aging into more madness, or maybe
the moon will flood us with wisdom, and we will be both mad
and wise at the same time. Let others sort out the good and
evil of things. I hope our children will prosper in a future
happiness we cannot even imagine. But I will imagine our faraway
children as creative, and productive, and fulfilled.' That was
Li Bai's legacy to me, and now I pass it on to you.

COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Dipankar Sadhukhan 30 October 2016

A beautiful poem. Thanks for sharing.. You are invited to read my poem 'Woman'.

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Anne Yun 01 December 2016

Dear Daniel, like my father's wishes in silence, you pass your legacy on to me, i will take the wings of poesy, and bring it to hearts of beauty. Thank you, father in distance. I love this legacy, very much.

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Anne Yun 02 December 2016

Yes, it's wonderful that we can connect with people by the purest legacy HOPE.

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Daniel Brick 01 December 2016

Dear Anne I wrote this poem for you so your appreciatiion of it means the most to me. I am so glad to rerad that you will carry poetry forward toward HEARTS OF BEAUTY. Only a true poet would think of such a duty and such a view the future. It's wonderful! !

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Madathil Rajendran Nair 06 November 2016

I reached this poem through Bharati Nayak. So, first of all, my thanks to her. This is a really moving piece of literature. It touches the heart and the reader feels for the soldiers, their lonely aging wives and daughters who miss their love. This poem is the story of all army men all over the world. Your language and imagery are exquisite. May our children be creative, productive and fulfilled. God bless. (10)

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Seamus O Brian 04 November 2016

Another brilliant star in the literary constellation of Daniel Brick, shedding its lustrous mystery on the earth crawlers beneath. Beautiful poetry is like the glow of hearth fires on a hundred hillsides in a far off land. Those twinkling lights may not be your home, but the very concept of home itself is a comfort to a lonely traveler. So too, poetry, for it may not be your poem, but it speaks the comforting language of the soul to wandering travelers of this lonely life. Well done, Daniel, a beautiful and moving tribute to a fine young artist, painted in the very language of her art.

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Daniel Brick 06 November 2016

Thanks very much for your appreciation, Neal. I had to concentrate very hard writing this poem to get Tu Fu's voice right, I had to throw away many drafts. I delight in your figures of speech with the HOME image and your focus on LANGUAGE OF THE SOUL, which is the essence of my pursuit. And, yes, I hope Anne likes it.

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Cigeng Zhang 31 October 2016

Dear Daniel, it is an emotional and beautiful poem. You bring out the hope of poetry to the younger writers in your poetic way. I much appreciate your keen interest in Chinese classics especially the Tang poets such as Du Fu, Li Bai. That was Li Bai's legacy to me, and now I pass it on to you.... A very touching line.Enjoyed.

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Bharati Nayak 31 October 2016

And tonight all my dreams are focused on you, Anne Yun, my descendant, my distant daughter. You carry within the ancient impulse to write poems. How do your poems reach me? I do not know. They do not arrive as words written in graceful calligraphy on precious parchment. They are a presence, - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - I hope our children will prosper in a future happiness we cannot even imagine. But I will imagine our faraway children as creative, and productive, and fulfilled.' That was Li Bai's legacy to me, and now I pass it on to you. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -The visits of Du Fu to Anne Yun will be cherished by this world of poetry for generations You leave such legacy to your progeny and your blessings will surely make them more creative, productive and fulfilled. - - - - - - - - Many thanks for sharing this invaluable writing.

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