Li Yu: Written on the Wall of My Mountain Cottage after an Illness

The mountain cottage just built, my illness takes a better turn
I am in a leisurely mood, clothed in coarse cotton, holding a cane
A gentle warmth issues forth from the open stove
Music echoes from water trickling in the drain

Now I whitewash these walls with water from the brooks
In my last hours to my ancestors I seek the Way
Who would toil and sweat in this dusty life
To compete with fishes and dragons, shallow vanities of the day

Li Yu (Chinese 837-978)
translation copyright 2004 Betty W. Lee
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