ZHANG XIAOJING’S AUTUMN By Tian Fa

ZHANG XIAOJING’S AUTUMN

By Tian Fa 

A busy time for Zhang Xiaojing in the autumn.

Even before her crowfeet can relax,

she has to be in the field for the day’s work.

The grapes are ripe. As her husband,

I can only afford to come home now and then.

Therefore when my neighbors see me, they are all smiles:

“you are here to lend a hand.”

It seems as if Autumn is hers only,

and dreamlike I have been left out.

For Zhang Xiaojing, Autumn is here,

and I'm more like one of her hired hands.

About the poet:

Tian Fa, a post-70s poetry enthusiast, has had his poems published in publications such as Journal of Selected Poems, Yangtze River Poetry Journal, Baoding Evening News, and Lotus Lake. Some of his poems have also been included in various anthologies.