POVERTY AND WEALTH - Giàu Nghèo

Photo: https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/population-development/2017/03/02/podcast-with-ichiro-kawachi-on-reciprocal-relationship-between-wealth-inequality-poor-health

POVERTY AND WEALTH

We can be poor but never be poor in love.
Live mindfully, in a way that we can share 
                              our time, energy, and love.
Be giving and generous of what you have, 
                             even if it’s just a little bit,
and whether it is a smile, loving speech, 
                             deep listening, understanding, or noble silence.


We can be poor but never be poor in love, integrity, and character.
There is no distinction between giving and receiving.


We can be poor but never be poor in love!
Keep your thoughts, speech, and actions 
                          pure with sincere intentions.
Cultivate your good deeds and avoid the bad ones.
Everything is interconnected;
We inter-are
just like we depend on our bodies and our breath.


We can be poor but never be poor in love!

Phe Bach

GIÀU NGHÈO

Ta còn nghèo nhưng không nghèo tình nghĩa

Sống xẻ chia thời lượng, chút tình

Hãy san sẻ những gì bạn có

Dù nụ cười hay lời nói trung trinh

Ta còn nghèo nhưng đừng nghèo phẩm chất

Sạch và thơm từ lời nói đến việc làm

Xin hãy cho vì khi cần thì nhận

Đời tương quan như hơi thở thân tâm

Ta còn nghèo xin đừng nghèo tình nghĩa!

Bạch X. Phẻ

A FREE SPIRIT - LÒNG NGHIÊNG

Lắng nhìn... ảnh: BXK

A FREE SPIRIT

Sit here peacefully; quiet and still. 
We breathe softly and freely,
listening to the surroundings
and the souls of the free wanderers.

The distant homeland is so near, yet so far away. 

Phe Bach

LÒNG NGHIÊNG

Ngồi đây hít thở tự do

Nghe hồn lữ khách buồn so nhớ nhà

Quê hương khuất bóng gần xa...!

Bạch Xuân Phẻ

LOVE IS STILL THERE

LOVE IS STILL THERE

Like the sun and moon from the beginning; they still have each other.

The wind and the clouds

are interdependent of one another.

On the streets, there are still beggars and orphans.

The dust of life is bathing in the reality of this earthly realm.

The blind man is still singing his heart-wrenching songs.

The elder still sells lottery tickets on the street and shops.

In the midst of the rubbish, a drowned child's life and hopes.

So much compassion

and mercy for those who are still suffering.

The coffin goes by.

Illusions and realities are innumerable.

Why not let go of your loved corners?

Hatred and love; haves and have-nots;

attachments and desires;

patriotic and unpatriotic.

What homeland? What ancestry?

There is always human kindness, love, and humanity!

Phe Bach

Read a Vietnamese version here. Đọc tiếng Việt ở đây!

THREE SHORT POEMS by Phe Bach

THREE SHORT POEMS 

1

As the dawn unfolds, the fog is disappearing

As life unfolds, we're changing...

Life and death is as light as a ray of sunlight

Time flies as the coming and going of sunshine.

2

Just like that, half of our lives traveling the world,

Raindrops, the rays of sunshine – the remedy of relaxing our heart

Tonight, the haves and have-nots are insignificant!

3

Wandering the empty alleys in the quiet streets

There are homeless people taking naps at ease

Suddenly, realizing an empty coffin that we’re all will laying inside.

3 Bài thơ LỤC BÁT BA CÂU - Đọc tiếng Việt ở đây!