Top 10 Beautiful Poems by Poet Chinh Huu

The Student's Notebook

Author: Chinh Huu

He heads to school
Holding a notebook in his hands
The wind carries his life
As each page turns
The new school
Like his soul
Roofed with red tiles

The trees provide shade
And the fresh pages scent the air
He feels joy and hope
As the nation strengthens each day

They bring bombs, heavy as thousands of kilograms
Pouring over the pages
Thin as a soft moonbeam
Innocent like leaves growing in the spring

Oh, each page
In my heart, it beats softly tonight
Like a hand waving
Like a hand stained with blood!

If you return
I would walk a thousand nights
To bring you
A day free from fear

The battlefield wakes beside you
The shadow of the cruel enemy
Can't block the light
That helps you study

Oh, the light urges
Like an order to march

1966

Source: The Moon Hanging on the Rifle, Literature Publishing House, Hanoi, 1972

The Price of Every Inch of Land

Author: Chinh Huu

Fifty-six days and nights of bombs roaring and artillery firing,
Only then did we understand what comradeship really means.
Our comrades
Are a shared drink of water
A half-broken piece of rice
Sharing a sunny noon, a rainy evening
Passing around a piece of news from home
Sharing a cramped trench
Sharing our lives, sharing our deaths.

Our friend
Lies on a three-tiered barbed wire
One hand still gripping the rifle,
His body halfway to the front lines.
Oh, the people who fall
Always lie in an attack stance!
To the left: Lo Van Su
To the right: Nguyen Dinh Ba,
On the nights of attack, on the days of defense,
Were you still there
In the platoon of our company?

When our friend
Gives his body
To measure the distance
Of the trench,
We finally understand
The true cost of every inch of land,
Here where you rest,
The battlefield stays firm,
Not a single inch will retreat,
Never, never to lose
The ground
Where you lie.

1954-1961

Source: The Moon Hanging on the Rifle, Literature Publishing House, Hanoi, 1972

Building a Bridge

Author: Chinh Huu

The bomb is made of iron,
Our hands are made of steel.
Oh, deep river,
We will build our bridge.

Oh, roads,
Don’t tear us apart,
Unite in faith,
We’ll fasten every nail.

We stand, night and day,
Surrounded by smoke and fire,
With both hands supporting
The endless march of soldiers.

Adding to the sound of gunfire
A shout of “Forward!”
Every truck that passes
Carries our heart with it,
Heading to the battlefield.

The river roars in waves,
The bridge stretches on,
Carrying the nation
Southward.

1966

This poem was set to music by composer Quoc Anh.

Source: The Moon Hanging on the Rifle, Literature Publishing House, Hanoi, 1972

Camouflage Leaves

Author: Chinh Huu

Ten years of endless travel,
Carrying the green of my homeland on my back.
When I marched away,
The camouflage leaves still echo with the calls of the jungle birds,
Longing.

The trees grow from every corner, sending leaves along with me,
Through the hardships of day and night in the campaign,
I still hear the whispers of my village,
Hear the mountains and rivers singing in the branches.

(1961)

The Wind

Author: Chinh Huu

Have you ever woken up in the middle of the night,
Hearing the wind blow from this direction to that?
It is my soul, breathing through the night,
Wandering between the earth and sky, singing a lullaby to you...

Source: Collection of Poems on Friendship and Love, published in 1987

Letter from Home

Author: Chinh Huu

A letter from home
Today, as I read,
In the trench, preparing for the attack,
Only then do I understand,
Each word, each line,
That I never fully understood,
Now I realize
The height of the mountain, the width of the river,
The two words 'homeland' suddenly feel so dear.

The letter from the rear, the one who carries rice to her husband,
Two shoulders heavy with burdens,
Writing to me with hurried strokes,
Like the laborers carrying goods,
The ink glimmers like a distant fire.
Traveling along with the whole country,
Here to fight the enemy with me.
Where are you tonight?
On the mountain pass?
At the bottom of the hill?
A letter from home
Splits the task in two,
Two people reunited,
On both ends, the glory of battle.

(1954-1961)

Source: Moonlit Bay at the Tip of the Gun, NXB Van Hoc, Hanoi, 1972

The Return

Author: Chinh Huu

A group of people set up camp in the deep forest,
Tonight, dreaming of returning to Hanoi,
When will we return?
The old streets, bricks, and tiles line the roads,
Oh, today they long for the abandoned home,
The crumbled walls that once stood tall,
Remembering the night we left, the earth and sky ablaze,
The capital burned fiercely behind us,
Young men who haven't yet repaid their debt of heroism,
Souls from all directions waving bright red flags,
Worn-out shoes from the long journey,
The dust of war faded the once-glorious uniforms,
The green-haired youth vow to fight until old age,
Under the sun and wind, amidst wild flowers,
Hearing the call from the people of Hanoi,
Return, return, reclaim our homeland,
How magnificent the day we left,
Swords sharpened, eyes blazing with determination,
Aha! The house tilts, the roof crumbles,
Injustice and hatred line the path ahead,
The old bricks welcome the steps of victory,
With steps filled with rage, we trample the enemy,
Thick smoke fills the air,
The flag of blood waves triumphantly,
In the sunlight,
Oh, how the victory song echoes.

1947