From 21 original poems to 15 kept, then expanded to 175.
21Original (2001)
15Kept (May 2026)
175Today
On July 23, 2001, the Internet Archive captured the poetry page of tuantran.org.
At that time, there were 21 poems—simple, unnumbered, and written in plain HTML.
In May 2026, I returned to these original 21 poems. I removed six of them—On Wisdom,
On Seeking, On Letting Go, two versions of On Desire, and
On Faith—keeping only the 15 that still spoke clearly. Then, I began adding the
new poems composed since May, bringing the total to 175.
Below is the original page as captured by archive.org—a faithful reproduction of all 21
poems in their original order and formatting.
The Original Page · July 23, 2001
Wayback Machine — July 23, 2001http://63.249.21.95/tuantran/poetry.html
My Poetry
On Wisdom
may i have the strength to strive effortlessly
and the wisdom to accept the things i cannot change
may i have the courage to observe the impermanence of all things
and the wisdom to accept my own suffering
On Seeking
let me seek silence in all these meaningless chattering
let me seek stillness in this hectic and hurried world
let me seek the light of wisdom to dispel the depth of my ignorance
let me seek love instead of anger
joy instead of despair
understanding instead of hatred
let me seek nothing at all
but the acceptance of this moment
B-52
bamboo branches swaying in the gentle breeze
water buffaloes reflecting in the moon light
bombs falling like raindrops
On Ego
ego
my own ego
big as a mountain
chip at it
a little
each day
Teacher
master
seeking for you
half way around the world
guru
where are you
but in my heart
On Love
i have no fear
when you are there
to hold my hand
Time
ten years
seem as yesterday
for i have not letting go
On Letting Go
destiny brought us together
for i needed to learn
how to let go
On Loneliness
desert moon
shone brightly
a lone wanderer
On Desire
dragonfly
in a pond of lotus flower
be still
On Desire
the eyes are windows to the soul
looking into your eyes
i see a reflection of my own desire
On Desire
rosebud
half bloom
sweet nectar
On Faith
dark clouds
approaching
songbirds still sing
On Death
spider web
collecting morning dew
a graveyard of mosquitoes
In the moment
autumn breeze
falling leaves
why think of summer
On Patience
every caterpillar
metamorphoses
in its own time
Mother
in my darkest hour
i cried out for you
i love you, mom
Miss Saigon
how strange,
dragonflies
spitting fire
Journey
one boat
alone
this vast ocean
Earthworms
i saw
an earthworm
crawling
next to my feet
carefully
i picked it up
and placed it
in a flowerpot
so i wouldn't step on it
then i saw
another
i placed it
in the same flowerpot
so the other
won't be lonely
Shermin
like a sail boat
in a vast blue sea
without a compass
or a star
to point the way
then you appear
bright as the northern star
radiant and lovely
with that far-away look
in your eyes
and lips so moist
as the morning dew
and suddenly
i am no longer lost
as i steer
by the light
of the northern star
<html>
<head><script src="https://web-static.archive.org/_static/js/athena.js" type="text/javascript"></script>
<script type="text/javascript">window.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded',function(){var v=archive_analytics.values;v.service='wb';v.server_name='wwwb-app264.us.archive.org';v.server_ms=323;archive_analytics.send_pageview({});});</script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="https://web-static.archive.org/_static/js/bundle-playback.js?v=2N_sDSC0" charset="utf-8"></script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="https://web-static.archive.org/_static/js/wombat.js?v=o9P2E1FK" charset="utf-8"></script>
<script>window.RufflePlayer=window.RufflePlayer||{};window.RufflePlayer.config={"autoplay":"on","unmuteOverlay":"hidden","showSwfDownload":true};</script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="https://web-static.archive.org/_static/js/ruffle/ruffle.js"></script>
<script type="text/javascript">
__wm.init("https://web.archive.org/web");
__wm.wombat("http://63.249.21.95:80/tuantran/poetry.html","20010723222447","https://web.archive.org/","web","https://web-static.archive.org/_static/",
"995927087");
</script>
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="https://web-static.archive.org/_static/css/banner-styles.css?v=1utQkbB3" />
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="https://web-static.archive.org/_static/css/iconochive.css?v=3PDvdIFv" />
<!-- End Wayback Rewrite JS Include -->
<title>Tuan Tran</title>
<meta name="description" content="the journal of a vietnamese-american">
<meta name="keywords" content="vietnam war coming home journal vietnamese american writing">
<meta name="author" content="Tuan Tran">
<meta name="copyright" content="2001, Tuan Tran">
</head>
<body bgcolor="#ffffff"><!-- BEGIN WAYBACK TOOLBAR INSERT -->
<script>__wm.rw(0);</script>
<div id="wm-ipp-base" lang="en" style="display:none;direction:ltr;" toolbar-mode="auto">
<div id="wm-ipp" style="position:fixed;left:0;top:0;right:0;">
<div id="donato" style="position:relative;width:100%;height:0;">
<div id="donato-base">
<iframe id="donato-if" src="https://archive.org/includes/donate.php?as_page=1&platform=wb&referer=https%3A//web.archive.org/web/20010723222447/http%3A//63.249.21.95/tuantran/poetry.html"
scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="width:100%; height:100%">
</iframe>
</div>
</div><div id="wm-ipp-inside">
<div id="wm-toolbar" style="position:relative;display:flex;flex-flow:row nowrap;justify-content:space-between;" nav="async">
<div id="wm-logo" style="/*width:110px;*/padding-top:12px;">
<a href="/web/" title="Wayback Machine home page"><img src="https://web-static.archive.org/_static/images/toolbar/wayback-toolbar-logo-200.png" srcset="https://web-static.archive.org/_static/images/toolbar/wayback-toolbar-logo-100.png, https://web-static.archive.org/_static/images/toolbar/wayback-toolbar-logo-150.png 1.5x, https://web-static.archive.org/_static/images/toolbar/wayback-toolbar-logo-200.png 2x" alt="Wayback Machine" style="width:100px" border="0" /></a>
</div>
<div class="c" style="display:flex;flex-flow:column nowrap;justify-content:space-between;flex:1;">
<form class="u" style="display:flex;flex-direction:row;flex-wrap:nowrap;" target="_top" method="get" action="/web/submit" name="wmtb" id="wmtb"><input type="text" name="url" id="wmtbURL" value="http://63.249.21.95/tuantran/poetry.html" onfocus="this.focus();this.select();" style="flex:1;"/><input type="hidden" name="type" value="replay" /><input type="hidden" name="date" value="20010723222447" /><input type="submit" value="Go" />
</form>
<div style="display:flex;flex-flow:row nowrap;align-items:flex-end;">
<div class="s" id="wm-nav-captures" style="flex:1;">
<a class="t" href="/web/20010723222447*/http://63.249.21.95/tuantran/poetry.html" title="See a list of every capture for this URL">1 capture</a>
<div class="r" title="Timespan for captures of this URL">23 Jul 2001</div>
</div>
<div class="k">
<a href="" id="wm-graph-anchor">
<div id="wm-ipp-sparkline" title="Explore captures for this URL" style="position: relative">
<canvas id="wm-sparkline-canvas" width="775" height="27" border="0"></canvas>
</div>
</a>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="n">
<table>
<tbody>
<!-- NEXT/PREV MONTH NAV AND MONTH INDICATOR -->
<tr class="m">
<td class="b" nowrap="nowrap">Jun</td>
<td class="c" id="displayMonthEl" title="You are here: 22:24:47 Jul 23, 2001">JUL</td>
<td class="f" nowrap="nowrap">Aug</td>
</tr>
<!-- NEXT/PREV CAPTURE NAV AND DAY OF MONTH INDICATOR -->
<tr class="d">
<td class="b" nowrap="nowrap"><span class="ta"></span></td>
<td class="c" id="displayDayEl" style="width:34px;font-size:22px;white-space:nowrap;" title="You are here: 22:24:47 Jul 23, 2001">23</td>
<td class="f" nowrap="nowrap"><span class="ta"></span></td>
</tr>
<!-- NEXT/PREV YEAR NAV AND YEAR INDICATOR -->
<tr class="y">
<td class="b" nowrap="nowrap">2000</td>
<td class="c" id="displayYearEl" title="You are here: 22:24:47 Jul 23, 2001">2001</td>
<td class="f" nowrap="nowrap">2002</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
<div class="r" style="display:flex;flex-flow:column nowrap;align-items:flex-end;justify-content:space-between;">
<div id="wm-btns" style="text-align:right;height:23px;">
<span class="xxs">
<div id="wm-save-snapshot-success">success</div>
<div id="wm-save-snapshot-fail">fail</div>
<a id="wm-save-snapshot-open" href="#" title="Share via My Web Archive" >
<span class="iconochive-web"></span>
</a>
<a href="https://archive.org/account/login.php" title="Sign In" id="wm-sign-in">
<span class="iconochive-person"></span>
</a>
<span id="wm-save-snapshot-in-progress" class="iconochive-web"></span>
</span>
<a class="xxs" href="https://help.archive.org/help/category/the-wayback-machine/" title="Get some help using the Wayback Machine" style="top:-6px;"><span class="iconochive-question" style="color:rgb(87,186,244);font-size:160%;"></span></a>
<a id="wm-tb-close" href="#close" style="top:-2px;" title="Close the toolbar"><span class="iconochive-remove-circle" style="color:#888888;font-size:240%;"></span></a>
</div>
<div id="wm-share" class="xxs">
<a href="/web/20010723222447/http://web.archive.org/screenshot/http://63.249.21.95/tuantran/poetry.html"
id="wm-screenshot"
title="screenshot">
<span class="wm-icon-screen-shot"></span>
</a>
<a href="#" id="wm-video" title="video">
<span class="iconochive-movies"></span>
</a>
<a id="wm-share-facebook" href="#" data-url="https://web.archive.org/web/20010723222447/http://63.249.21.95:80/tuantran/poetry.html" title="Share on Facebook" style="margin-right:5px;" target="_blank"><span class="iconochive-facebook" style="color:#3b5998;font-size:160%;"></span></a>
<a id="wm-share-twitter" href="#" data-url="https://web.archive.org/web/20010723222447/http://63.249.21.95:80/tuantran/poetry.html" title="Share on Twitter" style="margin-right:5px;" target="_blank"><span class="iconochive-twitter" style="color:#1dcaff;font-size:160%;"></span></a>
</div>
<div style="padding-right:2px;text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">
<a id="wm-expand" class="wm-btn wm-closed" href="#expand"><span id="wm-expand-icon" class="iconochive-down-solid"></span> <span class="xxs" style="font-size:80%;">About this capture</span></a>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div id="wm-capinfo" style="border-top:1px solid #777;display:none; overflow: hidden">
<div id="wm-capinfo-notice" source="api"></div>
<div id="wm-capinfo-collected-by">
<div style="background-color:#666;color:#fff;font-weight:bold;text-align:center;padding:2px 0;">COLLECTED BY</div>
<div style="padding:3px;position:relative" id="wm-collected-by-content">
<div style="display:inline-block;vertical-align:top;width:50%;">
<span class="c-logo" style="background-image:url(https://archive.org/services/img/alexacrawls);"></span>
Organization: <a style="color:#33f;" href="https://archive.org/details/alexacrawls" target="_new"><span class="wm-title">Alexa Crawls</span></a>
<div style="max-height:75px;overflow:hidden;position:relative;">
<div style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:75px;background:linear-gradient(to bottom,rgba(255,255,255,0) 0%,rgba(255,255,255,0) 90%,rgba(255,255,255,255) 100%);"></div>
Starting in 1996, <a href="http://www.alexa.com/">Alexa Internet</a> has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the <a href="http://web.archive.org/">Wayback Machine</a> after an embargo period.
</div>
</div>
<div style="display:inline-block;vertical-align:top;width:49%;">
<span class="c-logo" style="background-image:url(https://archive.org/services/img/alexa_df)"></span>
<div>Collection: <a style="color:#33f;" href="https://archive.org/details/alexa_df" target="_new"><span class="wm-title">Alexa Crawls DF</span></a></div>
<div style="max-height:75px;overflow:hidden;position:relative;">
<div style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:75px;background:linear-gradient(to bottom,rgba(255,255,255,0) 0%,rgba(255,255,255,0) 90%,rgba(255,255,255,255) 100%);"></div>
Crawl data donated by Alexa Internet. This data is currently not publicly accessible
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div id="wm-capinfo-timestamps">
<div style="background-color:#666;color:#fff;font-weight:bold;text-align:center;padding:2px 0;" title="Timestamps for the elements of this page">TIMESTAMPS</div>
<div>
<div id="wm-capresources" style="margin:0 5px 5px 5px;max-height:250px;overflow-y:scroll !important"></div>
<div id="wm-capresources-loading" style="text-align:left;margin:0 20px 5px 5px;display:none"><img src="https://web-static.archive.org/_static/images/loading.gif" alt="loading" /></div>
</div>
</div>
</div></div></div></div><div id="wm-ipp-print">The Wayback Machine - https://web.archive.org/web/20010723222447/http://63.249.21.95:80/tuantran/poetry.html</div>
<script type="text/javascript">//<![CDATA[
__wm.bt(775,27,25,2,"web","http://63.249.21.95/tuantran/poetry.html","20010723222447",1996,"https://web-static.archive.org/_static/",["https://web-static.archive.org/_static/css/banner-styles.css?v=1utQkbB3","https://web-static.archive.org/_static/css/iconochive.css?v=3PDvdIFv"], false);
__wm.rw(1);
//]]></script>
<!-- END WAYBACK TOOLBAR INSERT -->
<!-- OUTER TABLE -->
<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0">
<tr>
<td width="20" valign="top" align="left">
<img src="/web/20010723222447im_/http://63.249.21.95/tuantran/spacer.gif" width="20" height="100%" hspace="0" vspace="0">
</td>
<!-- INNER TABLE -->
<td width="100%" valign="top">
<font face="verdana, arial, helvetica">
<blockquote>
<b>My Poetry</b><p>
On Wisdom <p>
may i have the strength to strive effortlessly <br>
and the wisdom to accept the things i cannot change <br>
may i have the courage to observe the impermanence of all things <br>
and the wisdom to accept my own suffering <p>
On Seeking <p>
let me seek silence in all these meaningless chattering <br>
let me seek stillness in this hectic and hurried world <br>
let me seek the light of wisdom to dispel the depth of my ignorance <br>
let me seek love instead of anger <br>
joy instead of despair <br>
understanding instead of hatred <br>
let me seek nothing at all <br>
but the acceptance of this moment <p>
B-52 <p>
bamboo branches swaying in the gentle breeze <br>
water buffaloes reflecting in the moon light <br>
bombs falling like raindrops <p>
On Ego <p>
ego <br>
my own ego <br>
big as a mountain <br>
chip at it <br>
a little <br>
each day <p>
Teacher <p>
master <br>
seeking for you <br>
half way around the world <br>
guru <br>
where are you <br>
but in my heart <p>
On Love <p>
i have no fear <br>
when you are there <br>
to hold my hand <p>
Time <p>
ten years <br>
seem as yesterday <br>
for i have not letting go <p>
On Letting Go <p>
destiny brought us together <br>
for i needed to learn <br>
how to let go <p>
On Loneliness <p>
desert moon <br>
shone brightly <br>
a lone wanderer <p>
On Desire <p>
dragonfly <br>
in a pond of lotus flower <br>
be still <p>
On Desire <p>
the eyes are windows to the soul <br>
looking into your eyes <br>
i see a reflection of my own desire <p>
On Desire <p>
rosebud <br>
half bloom <br>
sweet nectar <p>
On Faith <p>
dark clouds <br>
approaching <br>
songbirds still sing <p>
On Death <p>
spider web <br>
collecting morning dew <br>
a graveyard of mosquitoes <p>
In the moment <p>
autumn breeze <br>
falling leaves <br>
why think of summer <p>
On Patience <p>
every caterpillar <br>
metamorphoses <br>
in its own time <p>
Mother <p>
in my darkest hour <br>
i cried out for you <br>
i love you, mom <p>
Miss Saigon <p>
how strange, <br>
dragonflies <br>
spitting fire <p>
Journey <p>
one boat <br>
alone <br>
this vast ocean <p>
Earthworms <p>
i saw <br>
an earthworm <br>
crawling <br>
next to my feet <br>
carefully <br>
i picked it up <br>
and placed it <br>
in a flowerpot <br>
so i wouldn't step on it <br>
then i saw <br>
another <br>
i placed it <br>
in the same flowerpot <br>
so the other <br>
won't be lonely <p>
Shermin <p>
like a sail boat <br>
in a vast blue sea <br>
without a compass <br>
or a star <br>
to point the way <br>
then you appear <br>
bright as the northern star <br>
radiant and lovely <br>
with that far-away look <br>
in your eyes <br>
and lips so moist <br>
as the morning dew <br>
and suddenly <br>
i am no longer lost <br>
as i steer <br>
by the light <br>
of the northern star <p>
Tuan Tran <p>
<a href="writings.html">Table of Contents</a>
</blockquote>
</font>
</td>
<!-- END INNER TABLE -->
<td width="20" valign="top" align="left">
<img src="/web/20010723222447im_/http://63.249.21.95/tuantran/spacer.gif" width="20" height="100%" hspace="0" vspace="0">
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<!-- END OUTER TABLE -->
</font>
</body>
</html><!--
FILE ARCHIVED ON 22:24:47 Jul 23, 2001 AND RETRIEVED FROM THE
INTERNET ARCHIVE ON 15:03:19 Aug 16, 2026.
JAVASCRIPT APPENDED BY WAYBACK MACHINE, COPYRIGHT INTERNET ARCHIVE.
ALL OTHER CONTENT MAY ALSO BE PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT (17 U.S.C.
SECTION 108(a)(3)).
-->
<!--
playback timings (ms):
captures_list: 0.933
exclusion.robots: 0.057
exclusion.robots.policy: 0.032
esindex: 0.009
cdx.remote: 4.981
LoadShardBlock: 121.272 (3)
PetaboxLoader3.resolve: 146.831 (3)
PetaboxLoader3.datanode: 91.913 (4)
load_resource: 178.949
nav: 0.165 (6)
-->
