Tin Moe (1933-2007) was a leading poet from Myanmar who had won the National Literary Award for poetry. Having spent over four years in prison for his political opposition, he left the country in 1999, never to return. The poems written in his exile reflected a deep yearning for his homeland.

Each with its own grace

by Tin Moe

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The moon shines

in its own light, its own glow.

The little torch too

with its own reach, its own fang.

The little jasmine

with its own fame, its own bud.

The yellow Badauk*

in its own season, with its own scent.

The deep wide river

has its patterns, its own waves.

The curly creek flows

with its own stream, its own ferry.

This, that, and everything —

each a beauty in its own right.

Nature blesseth everyone

with charm and power

as its gift.

Be not jealous, hold no grudge;

envy maketh

ugliness.

With its own clout, in its own pace,

in the right time, at the right place,

each finds its role, its own purpose,

proves capable in its own measure.

Translated by Kenneth Wong

Reproduced from kennethwongsf.blogspot.com

*              Badauks (or Padauks) are the yellow flowers that bloom yearly during April,

                the time of the Burmese New Year.

*Third World Resurgence No. 348, 2021, p 58