Du Fu mourns the end of the world

The definitive statement on how it feels when the walls come crashing down

A Vision of Springtime
Du Fu

Around me, hills still stand and rivers run,
But now the country built on them is wrecked.
The city bears the signs that spring has come,
New bushes growing deep and lush, unchecked.
I see what brutal history has done,
And splash the gaudy flowers with my tears.
I feel our separation's caustic burn,
As cooing springtime birds assault my ears.
The beacon fires transmit war's unheard drum,
It's been three months of burning constantly.
I would give a thousand coins to anyone
With letters from out there, from family.
I'm tearing hair out, brittle, grey, and old.
No more government hairpin; it cannot hold.

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Du Fu was trapped in Chang’an, which had fallen to An Lushan. The emperor had fled. The end of the world had come. And his family was far away, out in an unprotected town. This poem is one of the great expressions of despair and fear.

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杜甫 春望

国破山河在，城春草木深。

感时花溅泪，恨别鸟惊心。

烽火连三月，家书抵万金。

白头搔更短，浑欲不胜簪。