Her eyes filled with mist when she spoke about Zeeland. I was too young to understand her story. The feeling in my heart when we made lemonade was real and true. She let me add a little sugar to warm water, while continuing to stir with her spoon.
Zierikzee
the ring with the moonstone
still fits
© Xenia Tran
This haibun was inspired by a moment from my childhood when I visited my great-grandmother in Rustoord, the retirement home where she spent her final years. Zierikzee is a town in the province of Zeeland in The Netherlands.
The above poem is an interpretation in English of my haibun Rustoord, originally written in Dutch:
Rustoord
Haar ogen liepen vol met mist, als ze het over Zeeland had. Ik was te jong om haar geschiedenis te begrijpen. Het gevoel in mijn hart, als we samen citroenlimonade maakten, begreep ik wel. Ik mocht schepjes suiker aan het warme water toevoegen terwijl zij met een lepel bleef roeren.
Zierikzee
het ringetje met de maansteen
past nog steeds
© Xenia Tran
Rustoord was first published in Vuursteen, Tijdschrift voor haiku, senryu en tanka, Winter 2019, the quarterly journal of Haiku Kring Nederland. A very big thank you to Marian Poyck and the team for featuring my poem and putting this beautiful edition together.
The header photograph is the only photograph I have that features my great-grandmother. It was taken in 1941 by my late grandfather and features my late great-grandmother, my late grandmother and my father in his pram.
Wishing you all a blessed Sunday,
with love from Xenia xxx
Dutch Goes the Photo Tuesday Photo Challenge: Retrospective
Rag Tag Daily Prompt: Realm
dVerse Poets: Open Link Night #257
A further selection of recent publications in online and print journals can be found here:
What a special, lovely photo, Xenia.
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Thank you kindly dear Lois. We’ve kept it in a special frame with other family photographs and they are truly treasured 🙂💜 xxx
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A lovely story to go with that beautiful photograph ❤️ Hope you’re all having a wonderful weekend 🤗🐕xxx
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Thank you so much for your kind words dear Cathy, hope you are all having a wonderful weekend too 🤗💜🐕 xxx
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Thank you 🤗💖🐕xxx
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A treasure! And congrats on your publication… ❤
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Thank you so much for your kind words dear Eliza 💜 xxx
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Poignant! With such a picture and such a poem, your ancestors must seem very close.
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Thank you so much for your kind words dear Laurie. It’s lovely to feel their presence, especially at this time of year 💜 xxx
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This is so beautiful, Xenia. ❤ Universally evocative. Congratulations. ❤
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Thank you so much for your kind words dear Martha 💜 xxx
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What a lovely memory:)
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Thank you dear Karina xxx
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This is so beautiful and not to mention heart-stirring 💝 Congratulations on your publication 🙂
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Thank you so much for your kind words dear Sanaa xxx
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This is my favorite of yours… such a wonderful way to weave a memory into a story much larger than its length.
Congratulations on the publication
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Thank you so much for your kind words Björn, I’m so glad you enjoyed this. Translating it into English was the hardest part ;o)
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I know, I have tried and I think you noted the same as I did myself that your English voice actually changed….
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Thank you, my voice did change in English. I felt that a literal translation would need a longer explanation and remove too many of the internal echoes from the original idea.
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That is a very special photograph, Xenia – I have a similar one somewhere in my collection. I love the brief but vivid description of making lemonade and the moonstone ring – I love moonstones – and I enjoyed reading the Dutch version. My Dutch is very basic as I didn’t spend as much time there as I did in Germany. One of my best friends is married to a Dutch artist – they live in Norwich.
Congratulations on having your haibun published!
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Thank you so much for your kind words dear Kim and lovely to hear you have a similar photograph in your collection! Have you written a poem with that image? If not it may be a nice thing to do, just to see what happens. I am glad you enjoyed reading the Dutch version too xxx
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I’ve written poems with other images, Xenia, but not that one. There is one I cherish, with my great grandparent and grandparents on my mother’s side, my parents and my (then) baby sister and me. Sadly my grandfather had just had a breakdown and looks terrible, and my grandmother and mother were both recovering from TB.
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Thank you Kim, I can see why you treasure that photograph and it’s telling such a poignant story 💜 xxx
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I add my Congrats on your being published. At first I thought Zeeland meant Zealand; thanks for clearing that up. Just last year, through Ancestry.com I discovered my true heritage in Cambria, Italy. I’m thrilled to be Italian.
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Thank you so much for your kind words dear Glenn and how wonderful you’ve been able to trace your heritage to Cambria – that’s so exciting!
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the spoon of sugar is as sweet as the nostalgia you have conjured here
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Thank you so much for your kind words dear Laura xxx
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I love every bit of your post, Xenia. Congratulations on getting your poem published in another language and thank you for translating it so we English speakers could enjoy it also ❤
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Thank you so much for your kind words dear Lisa 💜 xxx
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You are welcome.
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What a wonderful picture and memory. I enjoyed this, even the Dutch version, which I could not read. Just the fact that you had originally written it in Dutch is so cool. Congrats on having it published.
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Thank you so much for your kind words dear Linda, so lovely you enjoyed the Dutch version too 🙂💜 xxx
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wonderful photo and memories (K)
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Thank you kindly Kerfe 🙂
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Beautiful coming together of writing and photography.
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Thank you so much for your kind words 🙂
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What a wonderful, wistful haibun. The picture is so special.
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Thank you so much for your kind words dear Toni 💜 xxx
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I love the personal and heart felt share – both photo and verses of your language. Congrats on the publication!
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Thank you so much for your kind words dear Grace 💜 xxx
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Very nice Xenia… I love the haibun, you making lemonade with your great grandmother! How wonderful that you knew her.
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Thank you so much for your kind words dear Dwight. I’m very grateful I knew her and wish I’d been old enough to understand her history when she was alive. She had the kindest soul and I can still feel the connection we shared 💜
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It is wonderful that she passed that kind heart on to you!!
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Thank you dear Dwight, it does feel as if part of her lives on in my heart 💜
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I am sure it does!
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Congratulations on the publication! I like the thought that the ring still fits.
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Thank you so much for your kind words dear Frank, it’s so lovely that it still fits 🙂
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A wonderful memory of family history in poem and photo.
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Thank you so much for your kind words dear Ali 💜 xxx
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What a lovely photograph 🙂
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Thank you kindly dear Julie, it’s so lovely to have this picture with us today 💜 xxx
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