父親,

您永遠活在我的心坎裏

 

Father, You go on Living in My Heart

                                   By KIN KI LI

 

 

Twenty six years had passed

Since Death severed your breath

I still can see at the funeral parlor

Your unclosed eyes, bearing deep regrets

Longed for a last gaze at your children

Tenderly I got hold of your hand

Your remains were all skin and bones

I collapsed in grief

My heart kept appealing

Father, why were you compelled to go

Leaving behind a world of reminiscence?

 

I remember

The days your pockets were penniless

You held my hand, often we walked along the streets in Saigon

Hunting for job, for a day’s bread

Frustrated, tired, thirsty

We could not afford

Even a glass of cane juice

Then I got hired at a baker’s

So excited at the thought

Of putting my first wages into your pocket

But your sudden departure

Paralyzes my ever-extending hands

 

Years rushed by, there were times I got handsome cash

In pockets, and good drinks in hand

The taste of cane juice bitters my throat

During your absence, Father

The family goes on staggering

Wealth loses its charms

Happiness is imperfect

Father, you go on living in my heart

With yours morals, yours dreams, and

The images when we walked along the streets……..

Eternally I’ll go on asking: Father

Why can’t I repay my debts to you ?

Why can’t I repay my debts to you ?

 

 

後記:「父親,您永遠活在我的心坎裏」是我在菲律賓難民營裏寫的。當時曾拿給一位美國詩人及一位月刊編輯指正,他們讀後都說不太喜歡這種題材,相反地卻十分喜愛我另外的一首描寫宇宙的詩。他們的意思是說,他們--也包括許多美國的讀者,都會喜歡讀知性的詩更甚於感性的;但我個人還是偏愛它,因為它注入了我真摯的感情。寫詩,固然希望能取悅讀者,但最重要的,還是要先滿足自己。後來我又認識了一位美國女詩人Michelle Noullet, 便也拿這首詩請她賜教,她讀後告訴我,她是真正的深深受了感動。我很感謝她,她是我這首詩的第一位知音,更是常給我鼓勵的詩人。

 

                       19862月於菲律賓巴丹島難民營