55th Modern Korean Literature Translation Awards Kevin O'Rourke Prize: Bus Stop Sonata
Cover of Son Young-hee's "Where Did All Heart Beats in the World Go," which includes "Bus Stop Sonata" / Courtesy of Siindongne
Written by Son Young-hee
Translated by Nam Jeong-geun and Nam Seo-jeong
Bus Stop Sonata
An old man rests on a bus stop seat,
Though yellow pine pollen drifts into his mouth,
And flies cling to his eyes' red rim,
Though the village bus departs with a wheeze,
Its black tears float upon the breeze,
Yet on the wooden bench so stern,
The old man's patience does not turn.
Gobi
Father, last night my horse succumbed to fate,
Whether I let go or lost the reins, I can't state.
The pouring sunlight's weight closed my eyes,
As one step up, two steps slide, the climb defies.
Gray dunes, unable to topple time's decree,
This place, a labyrinth prison, trapped by the horizon's spree.
Chasing mirages through an age, only to crumble,
Every path a cliff, every path a tumble.
Father, last night my horse vanished in the gloom,
Leaving me to ponder this endless, sandy doom.
When Petals Flutter
When memories, named, surge forth and rise,
And clumps of sorrow in the mouth dissolve and sigh,
When someone breathes, invoking love's embrace,
When the shadow of the paulownia beyond the fence,
Bruises with laughter that crosses the stone wall,
And in the heart, petals forever amassed,
Rustle and flutter, never dry,
In the chest, where flowers lie.
Under the Moonlight
A widow
of the village,
bereft of her husband
too soon,
prowls each night
like a furtive cat.
Oh, may the moonlight
be so luminous
that her
elegant steps
fall only
on its
grace.
marsh
My mother taught me the art of silence
Emotions are a luxury except for breathtaking rice
Even as I wept and followed her for miles,
The stride has not been reduced
At times, the tales rising in my throat,
Began to settle like crustaceans in their shells.
With a mask of nonchalance,
A lifetime drifted by.
Whether the tangled interior was teeming with emotions,
This summer, Upo exhaled a deep breath.
Every night, from the muddy waters,
I retrieve my face.
pepper field lyricism
Along the single-lane highway from Yeongyang to Andong,
Where technicolor umbrellas open and close,
The habitual monsoon takes a brief pause to catch its breath.
Sunlight, overlaying an autumnal hue,
Coaxes and caresses, painting everything in shades of red,
As the green peppers slowly ripen.
The secretive chatter gathered in each furrow,
Claimed as the richest harvest of this poor season,
Returns home with the last of the workers.
Dongchun Circus
Curiosity or compassion, both fine to seize,
Though unseen, the crowd's expressions entwined.
The murmuring behind, a scent of cherry blooms,
Once a rounded jar, now a square table looms.
Upon the stage, body leans, legs rise with grace,
Spinning and turning, shoulders stiffen in place.
Boldly rising, meeting the audience's eyes,
Applause echoes hollow, exits in a bustle
No wrongdoing found, yet a chilling spine.
Spring up
In a beckoning allure, drawn helplessly
Within round chambers, silence grandiosely. Soundlessly, they grow taller, unseen advance, Boys becoming men soundlessly, in a trance. Homes of boys, each heart room in bloom, Where sun and moon coexist in secret fume. At times, these whispers ride the wind, Tickling souls of the pure-eyed, a curious hind.
Come forth, the world that stretches out in a split second
Seville
Did I finally see what should never be seen?
The eyes that follow the dirty coins
It was a begging look without any emotion
The romance to soothe my travel-weary soul is distant,
And the soulless performance of a rude, old musician
Sticks in my throat like an unfamiliar foreign dish.
Carrying a child on her back, begging for food,
The deep, desolate eyes of a beggar woman
Resonate as a distant wail in the faraway streets of this foreign land.
delusion
The old
plum tree
a couple of flowers
made
Every Flood has its Ebb
Every Flood has its Ebb
be confined
to a delusion
Where did all
heart beats
in the world
go