Do Not Stand At My Grave And Weep (Author Unknown) - Mai Anh Chết (Lê Huy Trứ)

This beautiful poem is probably one of the world's best known and best loved, but the identity of the author remains unconfirmed. There are several variations in print, but the version that appears here was published in The Gypsy magazine in 1934 with the by line of Clare Harner of Topeka, Kansas. The poem has also been attributed to Mary Elizabeth Clark Frye, a Baltimore housewife; Stephen Cummins, a British soldier; J.T. Wiggins, an Englishman who migrated to America; and Marianne Reinhardt (no information found). It's also been alleged as a Navajo burial prayer. Sadly, we may never know who gets the credit for these comforting words.

Do Not Stand At My Grave And Weep

Do not stand at my grave and weep,

I am not there, I do not sleep.

I am in a thousand winds that blow,

I am the softly falling snow.

I am the gentle showers of rain,

I am the fields of ripening grain.

I am in the morning hush,

I am in the graceful rush

Of beautiful birds in circling flight,

I am the starshine of the night.

I am in the flowers that bloom,

I am in a quiet room.

I am in the birds that sing,

I am in each lovely thing.

Do not stand at my grave and cry,

I am not there. I do not die.

(This poem is in the public domain)

Author Unknown

***

Mai Anh Chết

Mai anh chết,
Em yêu ngăn dòng lệ.
Chẳng có anh,
Anh chỉ mộng vô thường.

Anh là gió,
Vờn môi em yêu dấu.
Anh là mưa,
Ướt nhẹ mái tóc huyền.

Anh là sao,
Lấp lánh trong mắt ngọc.
Anh là trăng,
Soi sáng bóng yêu kiều.

Anh là nắng,
Hôn em trong buổi sáng.
Anh là đêm,
Ôm em giấc mơ nồng.

Anh ở đây,
Lắng nghe em tâm sự.
Anh đang nhìn,
Say đắm giáng tiên nga.

Mai anh chết,
Em thương đừng nhỏ lệ.
Chẳng có anh,
Anh chẳng chết bao giờ.

Lê Huy Trứ
June 16, 2022