Dreaming of Li Bai (The Floating Clouds All Day Long) (Du Fu: Dreaming of Li Bai, Part 2)

Floating clouds drift all day long, yet the wanderer has long not returned. For three nights in a row I dream of you frequently, your heartfelt closeness reveals your true devotion. Each farewell is always hurried, bitterly recounting the difficulty of meeting again. The rivers and lakes hold many perils (variant: “autumn days bring much wind”), and I fear the oar may slip from your grasp. Going out, I scratch my white hair, as if I have failed my lifelong aspirations. High officials and nobles fill the capital, yet you alone remain so haggard. Who says Heaven’s net is vast and misses nothing? In old age you are instead burdened by your talent (variant: “by your abilities”). The fame that lasts a thousand autumns and ten thousand years is ultimately a lonely affair after death.