Bamboo!

Stretched out along the Vietnam countryside
The bamboo, dark, green, immense
Swinging to the air, floating in the evening winds
Like the silky hair of a young girl.

Together we shared the happiness of growing
Day by day up till now.
Her song sang me to sleep.
And it is in my heart still

Then came the evil war
My beloved country was drowned in blood.
The war desolated her beauty,
Only ashes remain, nothing survived.

She lost many friends;
But you, bamboo, did not leave the country.
You held tight to the land,
You lived through the storm
You keep Vietnam green still.

I see you again in my memory
Bamboo!  My childhood friend
How could I ever forget?
I am so sorry that I left you!

T.A. Nguyen
March 16, 1983
To all the one I left behind!