Top 12 Beautiful Poems by the Artist and Poet Lâm Bình

COUNTING THE DEWDROPS...

Poem by: Artist Lâm Bình

My love! Fragile like a dewdrop falling...
Twisting and turning in the spiral of life’s chaos
My dear! You are the support for my weary shoulder
Replacing the soft pillow in the lavish, sealed room.

The circle is so delicate... so remarkably fragile!
It keeps spinning tightly, making it hard to untangle...
Each drop falls... each drop softly lingers
Clinging to the fleeting rhythm of sorrow.

With every breath... sinking deep into a dream
We count the time, waiting for the wind to enter...
The tree stretches, its branches rustling
In the stillness... counting the falling dewdrops.... long
My soul lingers...

HCM 8/6/2017
P.S: Dedicated to Quang Ngọc & Đồng Mai from Drama class K2. May miracles always remain with you...

THE LOTUS OF MY OWN

Poem by: Artist Lâm Bình

The pink lotus, a single fragrant bloom
Its deep scent and beauty entwined with time
Even when life's storms rage on the path
The flower’s sweet fragrance shines forever bright.

The pink petals at the end of the season...
In quiet silence, deeply intoxicated
There are magical moments of stillness
As the lotus spreads its fragrance, the end of the season draws near.

You have gone... but the lotus still follows you
In your dreams, you wander in the vast lotus pond
Hanoi, my love, this season, the lotus is thirsty
Rain pours down, soaking the falling petals...

The humble flower releases its life force
Pure in color, spreading a fiery, rich fragrance
Attached to the lotus are the quiet days...
Each drop of sweat shared and fully spent.

It lingers with the heart of a Southern girl.

The Southern girl goes to pick lotus in the North
She gathers the bittersweet final blooms of the season
Though she knows the late lotus is no longer grand and splendid.

She still picks and holds tight to a season of passion.

Waiting for the one with pure incense
The scent of lotus captivates the heart, full of love.

HCM 1/8/2018

COLDLY MISSING YOU

Poem by: Artist Lâm Bình

On a cold winter night, I curl up within the ache of longing
My frail shoulders tremble, tears flow freely
My heart silently reproaches, why did we meet so late
Leaving my soul restless...

Tears fall, the long night spreads over the small pillow
The tears have long reversed, flowing inside
Knowing that crying now will bring a smile tomorrow
Happiness will return, and flowers will bloom once again.

The sky chills, and a soft voice calls out in silence
I wait for you to return, stirring waves within my dreams...
But rest easy, my love!
Tonight, I dream of you, alone in the stillness.

The sound of the gecko tapping its rhythm..."Waiting for you"!!!!

HCM 2018

YOUR JACKET

Poem by: Artist Lâm Bình

I’ve worn your jacket
With long legs that seem to stretch forever
A memory of a time when I was deeply in love...
Even though the jacket now covers it all.

It is gentleness, the purity of innocence
The allure, fragile yet hidden behind the fabric
Only you understand it...
I clumsily express my love with a kiss.

You accept each salty tear that falls into your aching heart
The jacket carries your scent, a familiar fragrance
It lingers in the room, but only I know its meaning
The unnamed days...
Am I brave, or am I just pretending
The woman you love
Only once do I hide my clumsiness...
Then I withdraw into my shell
I dare not throw myself into the ocean
Afraid of the vastness, of the storms and the roaring waves
On unnamed days in this desolation...

Suddenly, one day!
I wear your jacket once again
The fragrance still fresh with the scent of flowers and leaves
The stream hums its song from the distant highlands
The sea, this morning, feels like a thirsting wave
Pulling me to surrender to its passionate embrace
My eyes shine, my steps quicken
And I offer my radiant smile to you.

HCM 10/7/2018

THAT SHOULDER

Poem by: Artist Lâm Bình

Gently, behind that shoulder
There are countless words yearning to be shared with you...
I long for the day... you gently touch my shoulder
But suddenly, startled, you quickly pull away...

Fearing that a strong touch might break the fragile shoulder
In confusion, you feel lost, unsure
My image appears, now near, now far
But you don’t realize I’m silently sitting...

Can you read what I hide behind?
As the storm outside rages
The waterhen by West Lake calls to its companion
The rustling branches make a leaf drift far away.

And I stay still... while you, tirelessly
Seek a shelter for your lonely heart
When the leaf drifts quietly away from the branch
That is when you turn around, surprised...

I remain silent... watching you from behind.

HCM 2/7/2018

THE GUARDIAN ANGEL ONLY FOR ME

The Guardian Angel of the past... was stolen away by fate
Yet she returns to me on a morning by West Lake
Reversing time... I search for that deep color
To fully understand you and make our love complete.

Thank you, Mother Earth and Father Sky, for shaping your form of jade
Enduring through the ages like a bright star
Today, I see the clear, bright sky once more!
Uncontaminated by the harsh pollution of human life...

Through the bitterness of life's many struggles
You appear beside a cup of rich, intoxicating wine
Gazing at you in silence, my heart grows even more enchanted
I long to be close to you... but why are we so far apart?

You sit there, pure and innocent as a young girl
Remaining in me... stirring memories of youthful folly
Though the years may fade within my mind
They return to me in the rhythm of longing breaths...

I know time flows quickly in our naivety,
Youth disappears with each passing day
But you remain here, alive within my memories...
When I wake, I realize it was just a dream!

In the deepest corner of my heart
There is a Guardian Angel that belongs only to me!

HCM 25/4/2018, Artist Lâm Bình

The Wind that Whispers Through Your Hair
Literary House 5
Lâm Bình

The wind blows, lifting your hair, a captivating sky
A time of youthful beauty, filled with fragrance
Quietly passing through the day... waiting... silently
To receive the shy word of love...

My heart constantly yearns for that peaceful place
For someone lost in the sorrow of separation
Knowing that life is about giving, without expecting return...
Yet still feeling the sting of longing and waiting.

The wind blows your hair...
Old days seem to linger
Waves of love reflected in your eyes as a young girl...
Softly, the pain of love fades away!

June 2017

Photo: The late artist Minh Châu (photo taken in 1992)

I WISH TO LEAN ON YOUR SHOULDER ONCE MORE

Poem & Photography: NS Lâm Bình
Commentary: Nguyễn Gia Bảo

I only wish to lean on your shoulder one last time...
The winter arrives, sharply piercing the heart with pain
A small wish, untouched by deception
Moistening my lips, longing for the love that waits

In that place... At the end of a distant road
The young heart withers, the shadow of a father returns
My heart grows cold...
The twilight fades hastily in a rush

At the end of the road...
There’s still a shadow waiting for you
Go back, though "the one" with you is from the past
The warm hearth and simple meals of greens await

Better this way, so the heart is free of pain
The spirit pure, calm within the transient world
Pack your trust deep within your heart
Without sorrow for anyone, spreading no gloom

The dew falls on the leaves, in the cold autumn
I stand, waiting for your familiar footsteps...
Half a life, brushing past each other...
A red flower, one bloom, engraved deep in my heart!

HCMC 21/10/2017
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The Wind’s Reflection:

"Through rainy days
The sky seems stained with memories
Does anyone remember anything
When sadness fades, its fragrance vanishes
I send my love to you
Though the sorrow is but a nameless echo
It slips through my fingers, lost..."

Someone once told me, perhaps first, we live for ourselves. Whether we love or let go of someone, in the end, it's a choice we make for ourselves. As time passes, some will forget the sorrow, some will regret, some will feel content, while others keep chasing a dream that no longer exists. Happiness is so fleeting, and the human heart is so uncertain, vast, and boundless. Love slips away, but how far must we go to reclaim what’s lost?

The plea of a woman, her heart bleeding with the pain of a hopeless love—a love where she must let go, surrender, and bear the bitterness of a breakup. But this is a path she must take, resolute after a clear-headed realization: that man does not belong to her. He belongs to another family, to a wife, to children, and to a marital life long set before she came. "I wish to lean on your shoulder" and though this is the last time, she still "wishes"—such a simple thing, but so far, so unattainable! She must wish, but will that wish ever be fulfilled? It's a painful, cruel truth for a love without a happy ending—a love where from the start, one can already foresee its inevitable end...

I only wish to lean on your shoulder one last time...
The winter arrives, sharply piercing the heart with pain
A small wish, untouched by deception
Moistening my lips, longing for the love that waits

When love leads to parting, to letting go, to losing that one, every season feels cold. The chill of the weather is nothing compared to the biting cold of the heart, of the soul. And yet, the added cold of winter hurts even more! It aches, deeply, and the heart seems to crack open, bleeding. The woman, with a small wish, undisturbed by lies, becomes even more pitiful and lonely as her lips ache for the warmth of a love that cannot be hers, waiting in vain. Her bitter tears soak her lips, and there is no sweetness, only the sharp sting of longing deep in her soul. She must "wish to lean on your shoulder one last time." But he, even his shadow, hastily returns to where his children await him, where the long road stretches endlessly, widening the gap between them. The twilight dims in her eyes, no longer able to see the lover, and her heart grows cold.

In that place... At the end of a distant road
The young heart withers, the shadow of a father returns
My heart grows cold...
The twilight fades hastily in a rush

Go back, my love, go ahead and disappear into the misty end of the road. She speaks to herself, battling with her own soul to push him out of her reach. But does he belong to her? There, in that other place, there is a woman, perhaps old now, but to him, she is the comforting warmth, the everyday life that cannot be replaced. She is the one who stokes the hearth, preparing meals with love and sacrifice. So, what is she in his life? Does she stand a chance to pull him back, to make him look back at the life he passed through with her, the life where he unwittingly wounded her heart?

At the end of the road...
There’s still a shadow waiting for you
Go back, though "the one" with you is from the past
The warm hearth and simple meals of greens await

She too must free herself from the deadlock, no longer holding onto dreams of a man who will never be hers. It is better to let go, to sever the ties, to abandon their love so that both can live with a clear conscience, free from the torment of regrets... And if there is pain, it will be of a different kind: the pain of parting, but not of guilt. She must find peace of mind, a pure heart, in this temporary life full of contradictions. And so, her trust is packed away, deep inside her soul. No more despair, no more sorrow for each other, for they have lived enough through life's struggles. Let the burdens of the world rest elsewhere, for neither of them can carry the weight of an impossible love.

Better this way, so the heart is free of pain
The spirit pure, calm within the transient world
Pack your trust deep within your heart
Without sorrow for anyone, spreading no gloom

The night hears the rain dripping endlessly on the leaves, or is it the sound of my heart, wet in the empty silence as I wait for your footsteps that will never come? Is it the dew falling outside, or the tears in my eyes, soaking deep in the autumn breeze, my love? Life is so short, yet I feel as though it stretches endlessly, now that you’re gone. Half a life touched each other but never fused into our destined fate. Love bloomed, a red rose in my heart, but the thorns of love are sharp, and the sting of this love has deeply scarred me. What’s left of the rest of my life? How can it heal? In the end, I must let go, I must leave it behind.

The dew falls on the leaves, in the cold autumn
I stand, waiting for your familiar footsteps...
Half a life, brushing past each other...
A red flower, one bloom, engraved deep in my heart!

You return to that place, a place without me, and I accept this, engraving my love into the corner of my past. That final moment of leaning on your shoulder was just an illusion, a wish unfulfilled. How cruel... I accept this pain so you can go on. A poem filled with longing and regret, where perhaps every woman, somewhere, will see herself reflected, for life is full of such twists, and the poetry is as abstract as the silent love that only those sensitive enough can truly understand.

“Like the yellow autumn leaf falling until the tree is left with only barren branches in the winter twilight. Love, too, can be deep, but for reasons unknown, it fades, vanishing like the leaf that has turned yellow...”

Thank you to the author!

THE ARTIST'S LIFE

Poem by: NS Lâm Bình

When the velvet curtains close...
Who am I?
In the rhythm of a drifting step
The spotlight always pulls me in...
Sweet and fleeting like a timeless lover.
Drunk and awake through seasons of recklessness
Even silent in this void...

Struggling to follow the phantom of my steps
The loneliness grows as I live for my craft
How many times have I tried to tell myself, forget it
Don't look back at those naive days

But the illusion returns in my memory
Knowing when to laugh, when to cry with tragic fates...
The stage lights still tempt me each night
Locking my soul in an unquenchable thirst...

Though I know life's paths are divided...
Dreamlike happiness returns only for a brief wait
Suddenly, I am startled!
Awakening in the long night of restless heartbeats
So much to realize!
The life of an artist is fleeting...!!!

Leaving behind the dazzling lights...
Now, I am truly myself!

HCM 2018

I GO SEARCHING ... FOR MY OTHER HALF!

Poem by: NS Lâm Bình

Out on the silent sea, two souls are in turmoil...
They share with each other... the tangled woes of life
The vast sea... waves whisper gently
A song softly murmurs in the breeze, swaying...

Their eyes, wide and deep, capture all that is unspoken...
You soothe the pain with a gentle smile
Though the heart is weary and barren...
Still waiting for the rain to quench its parched soul.

Tonight, the sea... is sweet like the kiss you gave me
Without any adornments, glowing beneath the moon
The symphony of nature that I once saw
Only in dreams, wishing for it just once.

Forever distant... in that rain... on that day...
Now I stand, regretful, lost in thought...
Today, the symphony you offer me
Your gentle smile ignites my dried-up heart.

You and the Sea, like a saintly Mother
Come to cradle my soft heart to sleep...
The sea this evening stirs something strange within me!
At last, I have found it! My other half!

HCM 7/4/2018

HE STILL OWES ME

Poem by: NS Lâm Bình

He still owes me the afternoons in the small town
Where the autumn breeze gently caressed my soft fingers
The air turned cool, chrysanthemums scattered along the streets
Binding my heart to the unmarked days of our past.

He still owes me the chilly nights
When autumn leaves fell softly beneath the streetlight
The silence of the night, the wind rushing through the cracks in the door
The breath catching... as if hearing the steps of someone long gone.

He still owes me the fiery words of love
The sunset fading into the emptiness
The fragrance of milk flowers clinging to the blue jacaranda blooms
Softly playing a melody of the heartstrings.

He still owes me a hurried kiss...
His embrace tight around my fragile body
The night dew shaping the contours of my longing
Lulling me into the sweet dreams of youth.

He still owes me...
He still owes me
And he will forever owe me...

HCM 2018

THE PERFUMED RIVER INSIDE ME

Poem by: NS Lâm Bình

Em, the girl from the West
Has never been to Hue to send her melancholic poems
The rhythm of the boat swaying gently
The stranger arrives... and the longing song lingers!

By the river, me and the boat
The dim moonlight waiting for a distant traveler...
The Tràng Tiền Bridge spans the flow of poetry
With each beat, my heart echoes a love too deep.

The flickering lantern by the river
Still waits, anchored, for the shadow of a loved one
Sorrowful, flowers fade too soon
But the smile of someone dear remains in my thoughts.

Fate is uncertain, a courtesan's life
But I don’t drift away, night after night, as the river flows
Life as “The Girl on the River”
The Perfumed River remains unchanged in its flow.

Wandering along the banks, where pine trees abound
The boatwoman escapes from the cycles of sorrow
Tonight, the full moon shines brightly
And she closes the door to the past, forever marked by sadness.

Life as “The Girl on the River”
Will echo for eternity... on the Perfumed River...

HCM 10/4/2018

P/S ("The Girl on the River" is a classic Vietnamese film from the golden era of cinema)