A ROUGH SKETCH OF AUTUMN
by Hahm Dong-seon
| Shadows of the bluish-black pine forest |
| Harbor the trestle, the field of eulalia |
| And graze along the first footholds of the mountain. |
| A dragonfly threading the curved creek bank |
| Seems stunned by the shadows |
| And lights on a cosmos |
| That blooms in a tilt as though counting on the wind |
| to come back soon. |
| At the gates of the village |
| The long sound of autumn comes in a quaver, |
| The throat notes of someone singing pansori. |
| Over a grandmother's stooped shoulders, |
| The sun in autumn, whether it wants to or not, |
| Disappears as soon as it nears the horizon. |
| In my heart |
| A parched leaf is always sculling past. |
Translated from the Korean by Yu Jung-yul and James Kimbrell
Hahm Dong-seon was born in 1930 in Yonbaek, Hwanghae Province, which is now part of North Korea. A widely published poet, literary commentator, and essayist, he has served as chairman of the Korean Modern Poets Association, as vice-president of the Korean Writers Association, and as vice-chairman and president of Korean PEN. He is professor emeritus at Chung-Ang University in Seoul. "A Rough Sketch of Autumn" is reprinted from Three Poets of Modern Korea: Yi Sang, Hahm Dong-seon, and Choi Young-mi, translated by Yu Jung-yul and James Kimbrell, published by Sarabande Books, Inc. ©2002 by Yu Jung-yul and James Kimbrell. Reprinted by permission of Sarabande Books and the translators.