Birthday poem · December 10Major Snow, the 21st solar term: heavier snow.
Birth character
紅 hóng · red
紅 combines 糸 "silk" with 工 as a sound element; it first meant pink silk, then red.
霜葉紅於二月花
“Frost-bitten leaves look redder than early spring flowers.” — Du Mu, ‘Mountain Walk’
Other dates with this poem: September 26
The poem
“Before the Exam, for Zhang Ji” 近試上張水部
- 洞房昨夜停紅燭Last night in the bridal chamber the red candles burned;
- 待曉堂前拜舅姑at dawn she will bow to her in-laws in the hall.
- 妝罷低聲問夫婿Her make-up done, she quietly asks her husband:
- 畫眉深淺入時無"Are my brows painted dark enough for today's taste?"
Why this poem
Before the exam, Zhu Qingyu casts himself as a bride asking if her make-up suits.
This day in the Chinese calendar
Solar term: Major Snow.