Loving Life

Renowned Chinese poet Wang Guozhen passed away in Beijing on April 26, 2015, from liver cancer.

The poems of the 59-year-old poet were popular in the 1980s and 1990s, and represented a cultural phenomenon during that period.
 
Wang’s classics include “Loving Life(热爱生命),” “If You Are Not Happy Enough (假如你不够快乐),” and “If only There Is Still Tomorrow(只要明天还在)”. Chinese president Xi Jinping famously recounted a line from Wang’s poem “High Mountains and Long Roads”(没有比人更高的山,没有比脚更长的路) during the APEC meeting in 2013.

Here we will present you one of his poems “Loving Life”:

rè ài shēng mìng
热爱生命
Loving Life

汪国真
Wang Guozhen

wǒ bú qù xiǎng shì fǒu néng gòu chéng gōng 
我不去想是否能够成功
I don’t want to consider if I’ll be able to succeed.

jì rán xuǎn zé le yuǎn fāng 
既然选择了远方
Since I’ve decided to go to a distant place,

biàn zhǐ gù fēng yǔ jiān chéng 
便只顾风雨兼程
I’ll try my best to make the trip.
 
wǒ bú qù xiǎng néng fǒu yíng dé ài qíng
我不去想能否赢得爱情
I don’t want to consider if I’ll be able to obtain love.

jì rán zhōng qíng yú méi guī
既然钟情于玫瑰
Since I’m deep in love with roses,

jiù yǒng gǎn de tǔ lù zhēn chéng
就勇敢地吐露真诚
I’ll show my sincerity boldly.
 
wǒ bú qù xiǎng shēn hòu huì bú huì xí lái hán fēng lěng yǔ 
我不去想身后会不会袭来寒风冷雨
I don’t want to consider if I’ll meet with the cold wind and rain.

jì rán mù biāo shì dì píng xiàn
既然目标是地平线
Since my destination is the horizon,

liú gěi shì jiè de zhī néng shì bèi yǐng 
留给世界的只能是背影
I’ll leave a deep impression on the Earth.
 
wǒ bú qù xiǎng wèi lái shì píng tǎn hái shì ní nìng 
我不去想未来是平坦还是泥泞
I don’t want to consider if my future will be smooth or bumpy.

zhǐ yào rè ài shēng mìng 
只要热爱生命
If only I love my life,

yī qiē ，dōu zài yì liào zhōng 
一切，都在意料中
Everything is to be expected. 
 
（蒋隆国 译）