By LI Qingzhao Translated By East Sea Fairy
Who planted the banana tree
right before the window,
whose shady shade shelters the yard completely?
Of that matter I don't know.
Entirely lies the yard in its shady shadow.
Mutually attached are the blades of the leaves
and their ever-spreading veins. Leaf after leaf they go,
sheet after sheet it interweaves,
till finally a shade covering the whole yard the tree weaves.
Failing to find and real sleep,
not even a catnap slight
under aweight of sorrow greatand deep
I hear a rain start to fall just at midnight
drop by drop, and pitter-pattered through the night.
It seems that the pitter-patter me never leaves
and that the continuous patters never stop knocking at my heart quite.
So much me it grieves
that I have to throw on my gown and get up to shake away care's raveled sleaves.
This poem has not been translated into any other language yet.
I would like to translate this poem