1
We break off a branch of poplar catkins.
A hundred birds sing in the tree.
Lying beneath it in the garden,
We talk to each other,
Our tongues in each other’s mouth.

2
The sultry air is heavy with flower perfumes.
What is there better to do this hot night
Than throw off the covers
And lie together naked?

3
A cold wind blows open the window.
The moon looks in, full and bright.
Not a sound,
Not a voice,
In the night.
Then from behind the bed curtains,
Two giggles.

4
A freezing sky.
The year ends.
Icy winds whirl with snowflakes.
Under the covers
My darling is hotter than midsummer night.

Anonymous from Love and the Turning Year: One Hundred More Poems from the Chinese.
Translated by Kenneth Rexroth.
Copyrighted material; for educational/therapeutic purposes only.