Birthday poem · July 3Summer Solstice, the 10th solar term: the longest day of the year.
Birth character
草 cǎo · grass
草 means grass or any small plant.
離離原上草
“Wild grasses spread across the plain” — Bai Juyi, ‘Grass on the Ancient Plain: A Farewell’
The poem
“A Child Fishing” 小兒垂釣
- 蓬頭稚子學垂綸A tousle-haired child is learning to fish,
- 側坐莓苔草映身sitting sideways on the moss, half hidden by the grass.
- 路人借問遙招手A passer-by asks him the way; he waves from afar,
- 怕得魚驚不應人afraid of scaring the fish, he won't answer.
Why this poem
Hu Lingneng on a child fishing who won't answer a passer-by for fear of scaring the fish.
This day in the Chinese calendar
Solar term: Summer Solstice.