^{translated from the Chinese by Marilyn Chin}

In the eighth month of autumn high angry winds howl   
Blowing three layers of thatch off my humble house   
The thatch fly over the river, scattering shards
Some pieces soar so high they hang on treetops
Some plummet down to earth covering ditches and pools      
A gang of hoodlums from the southern village appear
They bully me ruthlessly, but I’m too old and weak to fight    
They dare to rob me in front of my face          
Then grab the spoils and run into the bamboo wilds
Mouth parched, lips burning, I shout after them in vain  
I feel defeated, slump against my cane, and heave a deep sigh       
The winds finally calm down, the clouds turn dark as ink
The autumn sky is hovering ominously, slowly turning black
My old worn cotton quilt feels as cold as iron
My dear children sleep poorly, thrashing and ripping the covers 
Bed after bed is soaked, the roof is dripping, no room is dry 
The rain batters us endlessly, falling as heavy as hemp    
I am lost in chaos and misery and can barely sleep a wink
Such a damn long night—I am soaked and exhausted, I cry out, “Why?”
If I could build a grand palace with a thousand, ten-thousand rooms
   A safe-house standing on a hill so strong that violent storms can’t destroy
   If I could shelter all the impoverished poets and scholars under heaven    
   Offer them a gathering place of peace and joy—
If I could hold this spectacular vision in my eyes
Then I would gladly freeze to death in my lonely broken home   

茅屋為秋風所破歌

八月秋高風怒號
卷我屋上三重茅
茅飛度江灑江郊
高者掛罥長林梢
下者飄轉沉塘坳
南村群童欺我老無力
忍能對面為盜賊
公然抱茅入竹去
唇焦口燥呼不得
歸來倚杖自嘆息
俄頃風定雲墨色
秋天漠漠曏昏黑
布衾多年冷似鐵
驕兒惡臥踏裏裂
床床屋漏無干處
雨腳如麻未斷絕
自經喪亂少睡眠
長夜沾濕何由徹
安得廣廈千萬間
大庇天下寒士俱歡顏
風雨不動安如山
嗚呼何時眼前突兀見此屋
吾廬獨破受凍死亦足