Maple Tree Poem by Qing MA Ms

Translated by Partiva
2017-10-20

Green, yellow and red leaves
Dance with butterflies
On the sun-raped branches.
What you hear is an Autumn sonata
Full of positive energy.

What a maple tree, tall and mighty
Strong and hurly
Stares at the world contemptuously.
Its trunk, up high in the sky
And branches live in harmony.

How thin and weak, those twigs relying on it.
If not in its surrounding,
Without the help of its imposing look,
You'd ignore their humble appearance
Shivering in the wind,
Their welcoming of you with their exhaled oxygen
And earth grasped firmly under their feet,
And their real but silent existence.

The autumn
Who can represent?
The future
Who can predict,
Other than this maple tree? !
Other than this indestructible harmony!

'Some leaves have fallen
Or it would look prettier! '
'Is this tree real? '
'Of course it is! '
'Why is no single red leaf in the entire Miyaluo(*) ? '
'It rains a lot, and there are two lunar June this year
Leaves would turn red in a while
But they dropped after early frost and cold rains
So no red leaf is left! '

'On this tree
How could red leaves stay? '
'Are your eyes wide open? '
'Fake? Haha it's fake! Faked real!
It's the Emperor's New Clothes! '

'Shush, lower your voice.
As for the maple tree,
You'll have sweets if loving and appreciating it
You're welcoming if believing in it
You'll have countless money by following it,
Simply and happily

If questioning it, delusionally wanting to tell the truth,
Criticizing and slandering it without checking reality,
And feeling with indignation,
You'll be attacked by the masses
And treated as an unruly rogue

Tell you what, there was indeed a real tree
But it died
And it's been covered with sement! '

'Then why? '
'This year Miyaluo has no red leaves
So it relies on the beauty of this one
To attract cameras and purses of different skin colours.
Can you see
Those who sell red and sour dates, wild mushrooms, yak meat, roasted rabbits and chickens
All have their stands around it.
Look, the person who seems in poor health sells yak meat well
And get easy money while lying down on a recliner!

In this society, money talks,
And the penniless is worthless.
This society doesn't believe in tears
Understand these? ! '

This greatest maple tree in the world
Speaks on behalf of Autumn,
Pretending to be fully confident
And invincible

This tree, with a hollow trunk
Is a wood without root.
Its beauty is made of cement.
What's being held high by the altar
Are deceitfulness
Aggrandization
And hollowness

(*) Miyaluo is a scenic area northwest to Chengdu, Sichuan, China