Meesoon Bae

THE WIND WITHIN ME

Everyone
lives
With a
pocket of wind inside.
Driven
from heaven to heaven
By the wind
within me
One way then
another, today and everyday
Am I a
balloon
that someone
else hold the string?


A NEW BEGINNING

A new road, a new field,
I'm on a journey to discover a new heaven.
My polluted daily living, my sleepy conscience,
Stricken and blown by the wind,
Along with my illusive and painful dreams,
Leave no trace anywhere.
The scent of an unknown future thrills my senses.
Unfamiliar roads spread out their tender branches.
I look around as I pass by one setting after another.
The sun sets upon a hill, and I see a new beginning.
Even if I may get lost and wander about this time,
I feel I can now venture into the flame of living.
'Once again, trusting him,
I'll lean on his warm shoulders.'
I'm on a journey
That smells like the coffee he brews,
Beautiful and more fresh because of its briefness.


Translated from Korean by Jacob Kim 　


SONG OF A WONDERING BIRD

There was a wandering bird,
long ago.

It couldn't sing enchantingly, so
its voice got hoarse, and hoarse.

There was a living bird,
wandering from one mountain to another.

“Don't ask me,
I'm not ready to sing yet.
Don't ask me.”

Even if it wandered
and any soft leaf or tender young grass,

“Don't ask me,
Don't ask me yet- Don't ask me.”


Translated from Korean by Tina L. Sallee