Poem: Dewdrops

The author used a turn of phrase here which might be slightly confusing: 打湿. Most commonly, we know the word 打 dǎ as “to hit” or “to strike”. 湿 shī means “wet” or “moist”. Put these two words together, and 打湿 means “to get something wet” or to moisten.

Though the title of the poem is “Dewdrops” – 露珠 – you’ll notice that the actual word is never mentioned in the poem.

昨天夜里，
谁从草地上走过？
丢了那么多的珍珠。
今天早上，
谁在草丛中看着我？
还打湿了我的衣裤。
太阳升高了，
谁收走了珍珠？
留下了湿湿的气息，
湿湿的泥土。
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Last night,
Who walked up from the meadow?
[They] lost so many pearls.
This morning,
Who was watching me from the underbrush?
[They] made damp my trousers.
The sun is high,
who left with the pearls?
[They] left behind them dewy breath,
and wet soil.