Po Chu I. Sick Leave
*
"More Translations from the Chinese", by Arthur Waley, [1919],
p. 40
[14] Sick Leave
\"(While Secretary To The Deputy-Assistant-Magistrate Of Chou-chih, Near Ch'ang-an, In A.d. 806)\"
Propped on pillows, not attending to business;
For two days I've lain behind locked doors.
I begin to think that those who hold office
Get no rest, except by falling ill!
For restful thoughts one does not need space;
The room where I lie is ten foot square.
By the western eaves, above the bamboo-twigs,
From my couch I see the White Mountain rise.
But the clouds that hover on its far-distant peak
Bring shame to a face that is buried in the World's dust.
"More Translations from the Chinese", by Arthur Waley, [1919],
p. 40
[14] Sick Leave
\"(While Secretary To The Deputy-Assistant-Magistrate Of Chou-chih, Near Ch'ang-an, In A.d. 806)\"
Propped on pillows, not attending to business;
For two days I've lain behind locked doors.
I begin to think that those who hold office
Get no rest, except by falling ill!
For restful thoughts one does not need space;
The room where I lie is ten foot square.
By the western eaves, above the bamboo-twigs,
From my couch I see the White Mountain rise.
But the clouds that hover on its far-distant peak
Bring shame to a face that is buried in the World's dust.
