Nostalgic River

By Duc Van Khanh Tran

The river witnessed little figures playing

as it felt the pressure of palm-sized feet.

It endured the pain in happiness

as it felt the pressure of palm-sized feet.

Now, the river has become mentally extinct, and

those figures no longer partition the river.

Now, the river has become mentally extinct, and

the river is an un-negatable vector—

it endured the pain in happiness.

The river is an un-negatable vector.

The river witnessed little figures playing.

Those figures no longer partition the river.

Yellow In Noisy Tranquility

By Duc Van Khanh Tran

Tranquil beats permeate

in the dim atmosphere

filled with bubbled liquid.

In the dim atmosphere,

joy and sorrow consume yellow

and let the yellow flavor simmer.

Joy and sorrow consume yellow

in the calming noise

filled with bubbled liquid.

In the calming noise,

tranquil beats permeate

and let the yellow flavor simmer.

Duc Van Khanh Tran is currently a Computer Science Ph.D. student at National University of Singapore. He graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with bachelor’s degrees in Mathematics and Linguistics and has been using mathematical poetry forms to write poems. His English and Mandarin Chinese poems are published in The Orange Rose, 《新大陆》, 《雨林诗刊》, etc. Updates on publication of his poems can be found on duc-van-khanh-tran-poetry.carrd.co.