Intro: The month of July seems more productive in our family as signalled by the pomegranate tree in my dream. The July 2021 saw the launching of this poetry blog where the best Ci poetry of China has been tested to the limit in translation to English. And July 2022 embraced the birth of my dearest granddaughter Eloise. Her presence has brought so much joy amid the hazy time of the pandemic. For new parents, a new life always feels like a rising star, the apple of their eye, or 'a pearl in the palm' in Chinese sense. Here we gather today to celebrate the blessings given and received, and the friendship challenged and transformed. To little Ellie this Ci poem is composed, both in Chinese and in English.
临江仙.红溪南岸柳树边
（壬寅虎年月圆之夜，喜得孙女云溪。周岁宴作。）
闵晓红
红溪南岸柳树边，
蔷薇含笑拱门。
感风应月知东君，
明珠入掌心，
云溪七月生。
初为父母方知苦，
日夜呵护不停。
明眸入心暗星辰，
一笑轻九鼎，
一语乐众亲。
By a Willow Tree on Blackburn South
(for my grandchild’s first birthday celebration, July 13, 2023)
- to the tune of “The Celestial Being by the River”
By Julia Min
By a willow tree on Blackburn South,
A rose arch cheered to early buddings.
The full moon wakes up a new being,
A blessed girl named Eloise Yunxi Min.
Baby care's been an endless commitment,
Her bright eyes can ease the sentiment.
A random babbling, a heartless chuckling
Bring so much joy like music of heaven.
