Birthday poem · June 30Summer Solstice, the 10th solar term: the longest day of the year.
Birth character
晴 qíng · clear sky
晴 combines 日 "sun" with 青 as a sound element; it means the sky clearing after rain.
晴空一鶴排雲上
“On a fine day a crane cleaves the clouds and soars high” — Liu Yuxi, ‘Autumn Song’
The poem
“The Little Pond” 小池
- 泉眼無聲惜細流quán yǎn wú shēng xī xì liúThe spring mouth is silent, sparing its thin trickle;
- 樹陰照水愛晴柔shù yīn zhào shuǐ ài qíng róuTree shade loves the soft clear water.
- 小荷才露尖尖角xiǎo hé cái lù jiān jiān jiǎoA little lotus tip has just shown its point—
- 早有蜻蜓立上頭zǎo yǒu qīng tíng lì shàng tóuAlready a dragonfly stands upon it.
Why this poem
Yang Wanli on a small pond in early summer: "a young lotus shows its sharp tip".
This day in the Chinese calendar
Solar term: Summer Solstice.