Tip of a crescent moon peeps over
Breast-of-the-Maiden Mountain
Over a shadowy slope
Cluster of nipa huts
Children’s laughter around an old man’s tale.
Cool mist over a sleeping village
A cock crows, a dog bays, far away
Drooping bamboos, light rain
Leaf by leaf, drop by drop
On empty streets dripping until dawn.
A stray breeze stirs the trees
Petal by petal, ilang-ilang
Blossoms fall
Scattered on the muddy ground.
Acacia trees, their leaves hanging down in the rain
Single, leaf by leaf
Single, sound by sound
The wet day and sadness are one.
-o0o-
