羌村三首(其三) 杜甫

羌村三首(其三)    杜甫(712-770)

羣雞正亂叫，客至雞鬥爭。

驅雞上樹木，始聞叩柴荊。
父老四五人，問我久遠行。
手中各有攜，傾榼濁復清。
莫辭酒味薄，黍地無人耕。
兵戈既未息，兒童盡東征。
請爲父老歌：艱難愧深情！
歌罷仰天嘆，四座淚縱橫。

A Triplet on Qiang Village (My Home Village) (Poem No.3)   

Du Fu (712-770)

Chickens squawked upon my guests’ arrival,

Up the trees I drove them go,

Erelong some people knocked at my wicker stile,

Here came four to five village elders asking about my journey through the thousands of miles,

They all brought some wine to bestow,

Pouring into the cup some were clear while some were muddled,

They kept apologizing please don’t mind the wine tastes thin and unpalatable,

Due to the unrest the fields were no longer tilled,

To recover the lost land in the east even youngsters were sent to the expeditionary battles.

Do let me sing you a rondeau,

In such tumultuous times, I still worry you all to have me consoled,

I feel deeply shameful,

Hence to the heavens ruefully I bewail,

All elders present couldn’t help their tears pour.