Friday, December 3, 2010

voices raised with the sails



in the autumn wind,
hark! voices raised with the sails,
these boats approaching
cross from a skybound shore:
the geese are here.


the words were written by an anonymous poet who entered a poetry competition
held by her majesty the empress during the kanpyo era

12 comments:

Elisabeth said...

Magnificent birds in v-formation. Flying south for the winter? Thanks Steven.

Friko said...

Magnificent photo, steven.
As is the poem.

I can't believe how many wonderful sights and experiences there are in the world and you are showing me quite a few of them.

steven said...

thankyou elisabeth - i've used this photograph twice on this blog because it's the only one i've ever managed to get of the geese flying south. yesterday i was outside in the falling snow and the hugest "v" flew over us and it was amazing because it was entirely ghostly through the obscuring film of snow and you could hear them and see their shadowy shapes. steven

steven said...

friko thankyou very much. the poem is so very good i had to share it here. steven

Jo said...

I think the geese all decided to fly south on the same day this year, Steven. Scores and scores and scores flew over yesterday...quite a sight!

ellen abbott said...

Love the poem steven. I saw a V of geese flying over not too long ago.

Bee said...

It's so very hard to capture birds in flight. I've been trying . . . enough to know that you should definitely be proud of this picture!

I love the metaphor in this poem. So apt.

steven said...

hey jo i bet some of those will have flown over head here, south over lake ontario, cut across ny state, met up on the coast and then cruised south on the big old thermals 'till the air feels just warm enough and then down down they go to the sweet swamps and grasslands of the comfy south! steven

steven said...

thanks ellen, yeah it's their time. do your guys stick around or fly over to florida or mexico? steven

steven said...

bee it's so very hard and it would make such a good layer on the knowing of this world to have them show up in some pictures. it's such a good ancient, chinese poem. steven

Reya Mellicker said...

LOVE those birds in the sky.

Stay warm, Steven

Golden West said...

Translating poems from one language to another must be an art in itself, to capture the rhythm and depth is surely no easy task. This one is lovely.