The Healing Journey

January 27, 2026

The poet Xu Wei, who wrote in the 16th century, was a native of Shanyin in the Zhejiang Province of China. During the Ming Dynasty, he was a popular poet and calligrapher. In 1541, he married his wife and moved in with her family, where the couple lived happily for five years until she died, leaving behind a one-year-old son. Shortly after her death, the father and boy moved out. A decade later, the boy’s grandparents returned his mother’s belongings to him with the red blouse, which revived Xu Wei’s grief over her loss.

The Red Blouse

My wife has been dead for ten years.
As keepsakes for her son, her parents’ family
Returned some of her clothes,
Among which was a red blouse in the Luzhou style,
Still with the mark of her sweat on the collar.
Lines of tears ran down my face.
It was night, snowing heavily.
That red blouse with tiny golden buttons still feels warm now,
The creases in the sleeves remind me of her loving bow.
Opening the case, I am unaware as a pair of tears flows,
A lone dim light shines on the courtyard full of snow.
(Translated by Jing Hu)

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