Fingers, all on one same hand

Long fingers, short fingers — Heaven laid them out so

If by chance one finger aches,

the others hurt too, crying out all day

Sisters, the two of you — what a pity

Meeting, you dodge each other — how can there be joy!

Even strangers keep the bond of one people

Born of one mother, how can it fade away

Life, when you think of it, is quite absurd

Lacking food and drink, how can one look fresh

Growing up we wish and want a tall mansion

It is fame and money coming in by the hundreds

Wanting to stay beautiful like the full moon

Husband and wife happy all year, all life

But it is not so easy, oh my

Good or bad, one lacks the time, lacks the chance

So then let us wish and hope for

A knowing heart, a knowing making, a fresh lasting dream

Sad or not, the matter is already done

Forget it, or let the water flow past the river

Bearing a child, everyone wishes and hopes

To give birth, be healthy, good-hearted and good-natured

Who could foresee the moments of torment

Sad beyond words, drunk beyond measure

Sadness is better shared, sadness in common

A few heartfelt words, already heavy to bear together

Pity the fate of my grandchild

Half a life the burden is broken, no more joining together

Mother and father no longer meet together

Wife and child forever no longer share one house

The child's lot, lacking, filial toward the father

Lacking too the mother's love — who knows how far it goes

My grandchild, fate hidden away

Loved ones drawn away — then who receives the poem

Whose fate, a fate thin as lime

Not a matter of destiny — the time of hoping is over

Only hoping husband leads and wife follows

Even that cannot be enjoyed — what more can the child hope for!

What wrong has my child committed

Still so little, how can it hope to meet its father

Coming here it only meets grandparents

Mother and child grieve to think the father is no more with them

Pity for the young age, the tender years

A whole life of bitterness, wearily calling for father

How miserable in this mortal world

Lacking the father-child bond, the whole family shares the sorrow

When the pin hurts, the whole heart hurts

The whole household is sad and forlorn together

Mother and father by the principles of duty

Nine children succeeded, spread across several homes

Who would think the youngest child would stumble

A pit of mud, misery and shame, truly too much

What joy in a mouth singing, a hand playing

Sad now, bitter and endless, sorrowful

Life too bitter, too sorrowful,

How few are ever happy — happy long, happy lasting

Some are noble-minded and make something of themselves

Some meet good fortune, meet a great blessing

Many people I have grown faint to

Many arrive fully, ending worry and trouble

What does it mean to be happy as an immortal

No worry, no brooding, no trouble, no greed

Wanting the heart, one must strive and work

Wanting to be healthy, fond of play and exercise

An immortal with a serene heart in leisure, do not be bound in fame

Casting off anger and folly in time — that is immortality

[?] excess greed then how to be pure

[?] then know how to help one's people

Helping without seeking gain — how much heartfelt feeling

Bearing a child, who would beget resentment

Bearing a child, all only hope it be dutiful and gentle

Money is the first root of trouble

If one is in want, virtue slips away at once

This is as clear as broad daylight

Behavior and gestures nowadays are seen at once

Old age, years of trade endless

So many weary of the scene, weary of the fleeting world

I love you, do you know it?

Loving you in poverty — to whom can it be told!

Others get to live in fine grandeur

My sister drags herself along, gifted yet disabled

My sister is ill-fated and ill-favored in marriage

Wife and children all sick, met with a run of bad luck

Hoping the later fortune will smell sweet

Bright and clear, beauty coming to push back poverty.

What wrong has my grandchild done

Born crippled, also because of a declining fate

What is left to enjoy of life's flavor

Both night and earth pitch dark, morning and evening

My grandchild, plain water and a pot of rice

Cannot stand or walk gracefully before anyone

All year round only sees the long night

A whole life only hears deafening mad talk

Wishing you, aunt, health and joy

Eating well, sleeping well, tasting sweet flavors

Do not listen to those who speak crudely

Do not trust those lacking and without a trade

Both children and grandchildren, content and glad

Rejoice with them in every way, lovely and peaceful

Now they live in every region

Praying that they be at peace their whole life

Thus you, aunt, live in ease

Living to a hundred years — that is Heaven's blessing.

Age has slipped quickly to sixty-three

Hoping for health like a young man

Old mother must be provided and advanced

Wife and children to make up for, thinking endlessly

Now who is there to live for

For myself, for mother, the long tale of wife and children

Cheer up, just keep laughing brightly

Enough to fulfill support — being a filial child already

Deeds and words go hand in hand

If one can let go of small things, one builds a high mountain

If wise, think it over carefully

[?] father sends word — think how, and act well.

My age this year

My strength is too poor, days and months gone by

Counting the years, I have grown old

Whatever is not yet done, I already like to speak of

Not hoping and waiting for life to rise up

Not hoping to eat and dwell in proper place with the children

My affairs, my living, are already complete

If the children are filial, it depends on them to be warm

In the end all will die and become ghosts

Who dares escape — usually already gone to the beyond

Joy and sorrow I bear in silence

Whom can I tell, to lessen the heart's sorrow

Life is a sea turned to mulberry field

Happy today, wretched tomorrow, sad today, joyful tomorrow.