Azaleas

by Kim Sowol · translated by Ko Won

When you leave, tired of me,
I will be ready to let you go,
no complaints, whatsoever.

And I will carpet your way
with azaleas, armfuls,
from the familiar Yaksan hill.

May you enjoy light steps
on the flowers for your path
as you go ahead, if you like.

When you leave, tired of me,
I surely won’t cry,
no tears, never.

Ko Won, editor. Contemporary Korean Poetry. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1970.