English Translation by Lee Kuei-shien李魁賢（Taiwan）
Chen Hsiu-chen 陳秀珍born in Taiwan. She has published 14 books, participated the International Poetry Festival held in Europe, Asia, Africa and America, and was featured on the cover of international magazine “La Barca” Issue No. 9 of Colombia, as well as interviewed by media from India and reported with her poetic career by media from Puerto Rico. Her poems have been translated into more than twenty languages and selected into several tens of poetry anthologies. She was awarded with Estrella Matutina by Festival of Capulí Vallejo y su Tierra from Peru in 2018, Naji Naaman Literary Prizes from Lebanon in 2020 and conferred the International Intellectual Certificate of the year 2024 from the International Cultural Forum for Humanity and Creativity in Syria.
The Sky of Neruda 聶魯達的天空
The wind
tears off the notices from autumn one by one
that posted in the form of red maple leaves.
My heart in despair listens to
your one hundred love poems
The spring is in the distance.
I heard someone calling
a sound after a sound.
An ocean is hidden secretly in my heart.
From the Taiwan island
I am flying to the sky of Neruda
to praise in a high key
the love sonnets.
Oh, my Neruda,
I love you
as a Forgetting-me-not loves the May.
Oh, my Neruda
I am afraid
I would love you so
as the waves love the rocks along the coast
to crush myself.
Chile in October十月在智利
In October
I accepted an accidental grace
with full hand of fallen leaves in the autumn wind
and close my eyes in thinking about the opposite bank of
Pacific Ocean becoming a romantic spring season.
Isla Negra*1 sounded with your excited waves
Santiago*2 remained many of your loving memories
Valparaiso*3 having left your secluded house
could be my temporary refuge?
Oh, my Neruda,
my footsteps will become
the momentary collection in your residence.
What kind of flowery love letters will be issued at first
among numerous woken trees and grasses
in the Spring time of Chile
to strand my
dazzling eyes
and to excite my heart.
*1 Neruda lived in Isla Negra time after time.
*2 La Chascona, the former residence of Neruda situates at Santiago.
*3 La Sebastiana, another residence of Neruda situates at Valparasio.
Duo雙重唱
The sunset imitates a red light
hung on the sky.
At night
The sea surface is looked like a solidified sky shade
while the sky photocopies the white tides.
at the wonderful time and space in Chile
you used your native language
I use my native language
to recite a love poem in duo.
At this moment
just like sea and sky translate to each other
the sound of tide resonates
in deep valley between two hearts.
Three years ago
at Sun Moon Lake
I heard with enlarging ears
the recital by exotic poets.
Among the floral fragrance
my trembled hands capture
a poetic white deer
hidden within luxuriant leaves.
At present
I read my poem softly
and surprise
to capture
the white deer lost once.
Oh, my Neruda,
I am afraid
the white deer that regained
would be again trapped into a cloudy wrong path,
I am afraid
my white deer will indulge in the clouds.
The clouds are raised from
two lakes of my eyes.
White deer, oh, white deer
don’t give up me once more
without regard.
In Your Embrac在你的擁抱中
In your embrace
I become a boat
giving up the wind and sail
mooring to your gentle harbor.
In your embrace
I become a tame white pigeon
giving up the whole sky,
to have you as my wings.
In your embrace
I lose my direction
depending on the two torches of your eyes
to navigate me in the endless night.
In your embrace
I reincarnate my whole body into just one ear
not hearing the beasts roaring to me,
but only listening to your whisper.
In your embrace
I automatically disarm my gun and bullets,
for you armed me with the most powerful weapon
which I am willing to be injured by for you.
O Neruda
I will spend my whole life
In exchange with you
an embrace of everlasting love.