Raising A Wine To The East Breeze Poem by East Sea Fairy Xing Yi

By OUYANG Xiu Translated by East-sea Fairy

Raising a glass of liquor crystal,
to the east wind I pray,
Pray fervently for you not to make such a rush withdrawal
but to extend your stay.
The weeping willow adorned purple-dirt-paved way
in the east suburb of Luoyang is where we toured hand in hand.
Hand in hand we toured that day
to beat the band,
all over the flowering land.

Both meeting with and separating from you
transpired at such a fast pace,
leaving me alone all the time in blue,
with endless regrets encroaching my heart with a good grace.
This spring sees flowers in a grander case
and I'm sure next year the flowers will be even more pretty in that fairyland
But what a pity! At the same place,
my beloved Fair, I can't understand
with whom together I could tour that wonderland.