Excerpts from
P O E M S _ F R O M _
T H E _ P R I S O N _ D I A R Y _
O F _ H O _ C H I _ M I N H
freely translated by Steve Bradbury  2003 $10
Design by Karen White

from "Guard with Pig"

A pig and a guard bearing him.
Then me, led upon a chain.
I've not the standing of this swine.
Having lost my hold on freedom.
The things I've lost seem well nigh legion,
But none weighs on me more than this.
They watch my every word and deed;
They treat me like a beast of burden.

Steve Bradbury has a Ph.D. from the University of Hawai`i at Manoa in English. He teaches at National Central University in Taiwan and is an active translator and writer.