How to hold this longing?

I wish to store all these tormented memories

in a secret box.

Hide it inside me

So I can live normally

But every night it wakes me up

in a sweet, painful longing for you

Why we are together,

at the same time very far away?

I lull my heart every night,

pretend to see the sweetness in the lost proximity

in the lost kisses

the lost touches…

The regret of all those losses

Will it drown me in an ocean of misery?

The beauty of love

Will it burn away this heart?

The divine emptiness

“Be present” (HJB)

Why we meet?

then be forced to part…

Why full moon?

then crescent moon…

Why you fill me?

then let me go

The emptiness

fills me again

The invisible Tantra intimacy

reveals itself

at night

and I feel

I am the one.

I can be everyone

at day

Only the emptiness

appears

when it’s not night or day

when I am not here or there

I am divided

to be in three worlds,

three states

Awaken to be no one

nowhere

beyond the timeline

What remains

the sensation of ever Samadhi

within my stillness.

What remains

just the scent of a fresh mint leaf

that stirs my spirit

Love in moonlight

Love in sunshine

Love is source of endless energy

Love is religion of all human beings.

Purification

Grows from the mud of samsara

The lotus blooms into endless love verses

Each petal contains a verse

continues to open

open

open more…

When all other people read those verses

The happiness will be released

The light will shine over

The love grows inside all hearts

from a golden seed,

Leave the emptiness in me

A purification

Just being here right now

ABOUT THIS POET

Member of Vietnam Writers’ Association.

Editor of “Writer & Life” magazine of Vietnam Writers Association

Media Director of SaVipharm.

Founder and Head of Hanoi Female Translators

9 Awards in Literature:

Vietnam Literary Award for the Youth in 1992

Vietnam Second Award in The short story contest in 2007.

Vietnam Award in the short story contest in 2009.

Award for the best short story by the Naval Command in 2015
Award for excellent short story by Military Arts & Literature Magazine in 2015.

The ART Danubius Prize in 2022 for her nurturing and deepening Vietnamese-Hungarian literary and cultural relations.

The International Poetry Festival - Europa in Versi Special Award in 2023 for her dissemination of Vietnamese poetry and prose on an international level.

The higher honorary degree for extraordinary achievements in Literature as Ambassador for Vietnam, granted by Prodigy Life Academy US.

The Great Award of Korea 2023 for her devotement in promotion Vietnamese poetry and prose on an international level.

The award from Thanh Nien Newspaper in 2023 for her short story with the title:
“Overcome the Flooding”

Published 25 books of prose, poetry, essay in Vietnam, Italy, Canada.

Her poems and short stories have been translated into many foreign languages (18): English, Italian, Korean, Russian, Marathi, Hindi, Romanian, Hungarian, Spanish, Portuguese, Nepali, Uzbek, French, German, Turkish, Chinese, Montenegrin, Arabic…

Email: kieubichhau@gmail.com

WhatsApp: +84 947358999

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kieu.bichhau/