Stone Drum’s Replay to a Letter by Lonely Changsha

Stone Drum’s Replay to a Letter

by Lonely Changsha

Dear Bro Qianzhi, it's the season of falling flowers, a deeply grievous season.

After my trip to Lushan, besides knowing how to chop wood and water the farm,

I did not actually learn the art of walking through walls,

and have forfeited the skill of breaking up big rocks with my chest.

The continuous drizzle in recent months was a waste, running off like a river.

Those aura-detecting people, cloud-catchers, fishermen,

and people contemplating drowning all meet here.

The entire afternoon, they practice being desperate, and look like deep thinkers.

The vegetation is lush by the river as mid-summer approaches quietly.

But, my brother, please do not ask me about my future plans.

Since I failed the scholar's exam, I do not study any more.

I spend my days planting onions and garlic in the yard,

painting chrysanthemums, and making fish stew.

If I had sufficient travel money, I would go to the provincial capital

to study traditional medicine,

but forget it, Sun Yat-sen and Lu Xun both tried doing that, too.

Recently, I floated down the Three Gorges, and fell for a woman,

but her father resented me as vulgar, and, like a tiger or eagle,

keeps me away from her, alas, what can I do?

More and more days fly by, and the future does not look promising.

After Wang Baogai left here for Yangze River Delta, Yancheng, our town, feels like an empty nest.

Summer solstice is near, now Grain-in-Ear has past.

How are things with you up in the mountains?

Looking forward to your return.  Please hand Bro Zhiqiu my best wishes.

About the poet:

Lonely Changsha, originally named Liu Yang, was born in Hengyang, Hunan Province in 1991. He is a Hunan‑style chef who writes poetry occasionally with few publications. He started writing poems in 2008 and once joined the Breakout Poetry Society. Later, together with fellow writers, he founded the post‑90s poetry group Jin Tui Poetry Society. He was awarded the First Southern Progressive Poet Prize. After graduating from high school, he took various odd jobs to make a living. After 2014, he suspended his writing temporarily due to work commitments. In June 2018, he joined the Upstream of Blue Ink Poetry Group of Hunan and resumed his poetic creation.