What happened in CCBG Summer Camp 2024? - A peek through Lihua's poems

Once a while back, Chinese people with an average education wrote poems like drinking water and breathing air.  Inhibiting my urge to pile up examples for you, I just want to say that our program happened upon a teacher who still lives like that. After a day of working at the 2024 summer camp, she would go home and jot down poems like someone would write a diary. I only learned about these poems several months later when snow was about to fall. I picked several, butchered a few lines (so you know whom to blame for places lacking in poetry sense) to make it easier for our younger readers, and made a collection entitled -

Lihua's 2024 Summer Camp Poem Collection 

李丽华 2024 夏令营诗集

qún shān

群 山

Mountains

yōu rán yì shū yuán

悠然一书园

There emerges a book garden,

qún shān biàn yê gā dī xiàn

群山遍野高低现

mountains tall and low spread throughout the fields.

jìn shì hái tóng lü shàng huā

竟是孩提履上花

They turned out to be children's shoes,

shuāng shuāng bù chóng yàng

双双不重样

with not a single pair alike.

wû hú sì hâ guâng

五湖四海广

With lakes and oceans the world is vast.

zhēng xiāng dî

争相抵

Rubbing shoulders,

gân zòng héng

敢纵横

charging forward, 

zú xià shēng huī qù zhàng liáng

足下生辉去丈量

you shine and dare to measure it all.

 

hán guó chéng lî xiâo mò fáng

韩国城里小磨坊

The Small Mill in K-Town

máng zhông* shō mài máng 

芒种*收麦忙

On the day of Mang Zhong people were busy harvesting wheats,

mâ luò qí pâ lái bāng máng

马洛奇跑过来帮忙

Malachy ran over to help.

mō mo xiâ shí mò

摸摸小石磨

He touched the little stone mill,

wén wen mài jiāng xiāng

闻闻麦浆香

and smelled the freshly ground wheat berries.

zhàn shàng xiâ bân dèng

站上小板凳

He got on the little stool,

gâ shàng mò pán cháng

赶上磨盘长

so he reached the handle.

shí tóu mò pán tuī de yī quān yòu yī quān

石头磨盘推得一圈又一圈

The stone mill was pushed round and round,

zhōng wén jù zi shuō de zài xiâng zài xiâng

中文句子说得再响再响

while his Chinese sentences were uttered louder and louder.

*芒种是24节气之一，处于阳历每年6月5-7日，农民收成小麦。The Day of Mang-Zhong is one of 24 Solar Terms, and the days around Mang-Zhong see the harvest of wheats. Solar Terms are important dates that signals changes in nature and the necessary farming actions people should take.

bā bâo zhōu

八宝粥

Eight Treasure Congee

nuò nuò de xiāng mî 

糯糯的香米

sticky rice

hóng hóng de dòu

红红的豆

red beans

féi dū du de huā shēng

肥嘟嘟的花生

chubby peanuts 

bâ lián zî qīn gè gòu

把莲子亲个够

kissing lotus seeds

zâo zi hé táo hé lông yân

枣子、核桃和龙眼

dates, walnuts and dragon eyes 

bû xiê yòu bâ dà nâo jiàn

补血又把大脑健

good for your blood and mind

bì shàng yī wâ là bâ zhōu

壁上一碗腊八粥

A bowl of Eight Treasure congee on the wall 

kē kē kàn de kôu shuî liú

颗颗看得口水流

every morsel makes my mouth water

xiâo hán bú huì zì jî pâo

小寒*不会自己跑

The winter day of Xiao-Han* (Small Cold) has no legs,

shì xià lìng yíng de lâo shī bâ tā zhuài lái liâo

是夏令营的老师把它拽来了

and it's the summer camp teachers who dragged Xiao-Han to the summer.

*小寒是24节气之一，处于每年的1月6日左右。中国人有这天吃八宝粥的传统。Xiao-Han is one of 24 Solar Terms and falls on and around Jan 6th each year. This poem describes one of the activities CCBG summer campers did to experience this tradition.

sì xiâo zâi

四小仔

Four Lads

chàng gē niàn shī

唱歌、念诗

To sing songs and to recite poems

bù rú hân gē hân shī

不如喊歌喊诗

turns into shouting songs and poems.

fēng kuáng wán zhōng wén

疯狂玩中文

Playing with Chinese language

kuài lè xiâo zâi sì zhī

快乐小仔四只

are four young lads.

fáng dîng hân de wēng wēng xiâng

房顶喊得嗡嗡响

The rooftop buzzes with shouts.

diàn tī hân de yáo yáo huàng

电梯喊得摇摇晃

The elevator shakes with shouts.

bâo ān pâ lái kàn qíng kuàng

保安跑来看情况

The super runs over to check it out.

lâo shī kuài bâ xiào liân cáng

老师快把笑脸藏

The teacher's smile quickly goes into disguise.