Autumn Fragrance



Lady Autumn has finally, to my mountain abode, arrived

Move over, Miss Summer with your scathingly hot smile

The new air, moist and fresh, although a little chilly

imbued with the scents of nostalgia and poetry

to make one’s soul wander into a romantic dream…

I dream of a faraway place

where there’s a moonlit river

and, of course, there’s always a girl

Ah, but she seems to me more like an angel,

With raven-black hair, silky and lustrous,

flowing down her gracious shoulders…

Her eyes, depthless orbs of the infinite soul,

Sometimes they can be mysterious Black Holes

that pulls in your heart, and then you’re totally lost!

Oftentimes, they reflect the vast starry sky,

With the silver crescent moon lit up in a happy smile…

But the magic really happens when she sings

The wandering clouds stop their aimless driftings

The forest birds stop their merry-making tweets

The river currents stop flowing for many a heartbeat…

All listen to the melody floating in the air

Is it really coming from the lips of a damsel, 

Or is this music from a heavenly realm bestowed…

Words are forgotten, but the melody of her voice

Soft and clear like mount'n brook water

Caressing like ivory rays of moonlight,

Soothing like a homeland lullaby,

Warming one’s heart in the darkness of the night…


Vuong Thanh,  10.2018