Coming Home

回 乡 偶 书

Written by He Zhizhang in 744

少 小 离 家 老 大 回，乡 音 无 改 鬓 毛 衰，

儿 童 相 见 不 相 识，笑 问 客 从 何 处 来。

　

Version 1:

Meeting My Kids

I left home early in my life and came back in my old age

My native dialect did not change but my hair turned white and gray

I didn’t recognize my kids at first nor did they know me

No wonder why they treated me a guest and asked me where I stayed

Version 2:

Coming Home

Translated by Andrew W.F. Wong

I left home young, now old, return care free,

My tongue unchanged, my hair now thinner be.

Unknown I am to the boys and girls I meet,

Smiling they ask, “Sir, from whence come thee?”

  I posted two different versions of this poem. The same as the “thinking of you”, these two versions have different titles. Actually the real meaning of the original title is only “writing something in a coincident case when I back home”. So the second title is translate it directly but the first one making “meeting my child” as a title is abstract from the whole poem totally.

  In fact, it`s distressing story to author. He left hometown when he was young even he was still in adolescent, but he back the hometown at the age of 80s as a retired man. In ancient China, the acreage of a village always be small and limited people lived in, therefore, you would know all your neighbors and fellows. But at the last two sentences of this poem, it said the child in our village coming towards me, and he asked smilingly “where are you from”.  The climax of the poem occurs, the child should be known the author as the fellows in the same village. It proved that the author left home too long to let the child had never been seen him.

  He Zhizhang, the author, wrote this poem to express the unchanged accent and changed environment when he was 86 years old. We can feel a slight sorrowful atmosphere from the question that the child asked with smile. 

Thinking of You

水调歌头

written during the night of Mid-Autumn Festival of 1076 by Su TangPo

明月几时有，把酒问青天。不知天上宫阙，今夕是何年。

我欲乘风归去, 又恐琼楼玉宇，高处不胜寒，起舞弄清影，何似在人间。

转朱阁，低绮户，照无眠。不应有恨，何事长向别时圆。

人有悲欢离合，月有阴晴圆缺，此事古难全。但愿人长久，千里共婵娟。

Version 1:

Thinking of You

Translated by Shun-Yi Lee in 1998

when will the moon be clear and bright?

with a cup of wine in my hand, i asked the blue sky.

i don`t know what season it would be in the heavens on this night.

i`d like to ride the wind to fly home.

yet i fear the crystal and jade mansions are much too high and cold for me.

dancing with my moon-lit shadow,

it does not seem like a human world.

The moon rounds the red mansion Stoops to silk-pad doors, 

Shines upon the sleepless Bearing no grudge,

Why does the moon tend to be full when people are apart?

People may have sorrow or joy, be near or far apart,

The moon may be dim or bright, wax or wane,

This has been going on since the beginning of time.

May we all be blessed with longevity Though far apart, we are still able to share the beauty of the moon together.

Version 2

Shui Diao Ge Tou

translated by Lin Yutang

How rare the moon, so round and clear!

With cup in hand, I ask of the blue sky,

"I do not know in the celestial sphere

What name this festive night goes by?"

I want to fly home, riding the air,

But fear the ethereal cold up there,

The jade and crystal mansions are so high!

Dancing to my shadow,

I feel no longer the mortal tie.

She rounds the vermilion tower,

Stoops to silk-pad doors,

Shines on those who sleepless lie.

Why does she, bearing us no grudge,

Shine upon our parting, reunion deny?

But rare is perfect happiness--

The moon does wax, the moon does wane,

And so men meet and say goodbye.

I only pray our life be long,

And our souls together heavenward fly!

  i posted two different versions about this poem. you can find a big difference between this two versions directly, they have distinct titles. actually the second one is only use the english letters to imitate the similar chinses pronunciation, but the first one abstracts the mainstream meaning from the poem and give it a new title"thinking of you".

  the author of the poem, Su Tongpo, is a quite famous poet in china, and this poem probably is the most well-known work. nearly all the chinese know this poem, especially the last sentence.

  this poem wrote in Mid-Autumn Festival, a traditional chinses festival,that always means "Together".  because in the chinses lunar calender, you can find the fullest moon in that day, so the family should be reunited in the fullest moon day. and we have a specialist food for Mid-Autumn Festival-- Mooncake. mooncakes are all rounded,cuz rounded in chinses has the similar pronunciation with "Together", like the full moon.

  the poem originally was written for author`s brother. Su Tongpo was far from home in the together moment, so he wrote this poem to express his missing feelings and wishing his brother best. in the poet he wrote pray our life be long, in fact in ancient china, wishing you longevity is the best wishes. 

  at the last sentence, he told his brother we can watched the same moon, as we are together now. and this sentence spreaded all around china, and hold a fresh condition in the 1000-year history.

  in the Mid-Autumn Festival day, i sent a message to my parents, it`s just the last two sentences of this poem. even our distance is more over 1000km, but we can watch the same and the only moon on our heads, as we are together now.