SPRING NIGHT IN THE CHANCELLERY

Flower-shaded palace walls darken further at dusk.

Chirping birds pass by, heading to a perch for the night.

The stars appear, looking down on city and palace.

The moon ascends, shining brighter into the heavens.

Sleepless, I conjure arrivals in the sounds of the wind:

golden keys turning, jade pendants jangling on bridles.

I have a report to give at the dawn audience.

Again and again, I check the progress of the night.

 MEANDERING RIVER

1

Spring diminishes with each falling petal,

countless points of sorrow swirling in the wind.

Soon I will see the last remaining flower

and will then be drinking wine without solace.

Kingfishers nest on a hut by the river.

Unicorns adorn the border of a high tomb.

Looking into nature tells you to seek joy.

So why do I strive for undeserved honor?

     

2

Daily after court, I pawn some of last season’s clothes.

And then, stinking drunk, I stumble home from the river.

An unpaid tab, I’ve got one in most all the taverns.

Since ancient times, almost no one’s made it to seventy.

Butterflies weave deeply into the bank of flowers.

Dragonflies dawdle and dip down over the water.

Our words come and are gone, just as all things are fleeting.

Let us be together for this, our little time.

--Du Fu

 THE IMPERIAL ARMY RECOVERS HONAN AND HOPEI

Just now, here in Sichuan, news of a great victory!

Weeping for joy, tears soaking the front of my gown.

Turning to my wife and children–all my sorrow gone.

Scrambling around packing, quickly rolling up scrolls.

In the midday sun, singing out loud and guzzling wine.

The greening spring will be my travelling companion.

I’ll leave right away, passing through Pa Gorge to Wu Gorge,

sailing on to Xiangyang and then to Luoyang!

     –Du Fu

PAINTED HAWK

  

From blank white silk arise wind and frost– 

a blue hawk, painted in fine detail. 

Its body tenses, spotting a wily hare. 

Its eyes glare like an angry barbarian. 

The bright tether ring tempts your grasp. 

The high perch solicits your call. 

Would the great hawk then attack lesser birds, 

marring the green plain with blood and feathers? 

      –Du Fu

Not yet mown, the lawn 

full now of dandelions 

and grape hyacinth.

When the vet killed him, ending him and his misery, they rolled him away on a rough floor, ears twitching. Good Boy asleep and dreaming. When the vet killed him, ending him and his misery, they rolled him away on a rough floor, ears twitching, as if asleep and dreaming.

 

Marie Tuohy, 95, died of Covid pneumonia on January 24, 2021 at The Maplewood extended care facility in Webster, New York.  

Marie was born on March 5, 1925 to Charles Holmes and Elizabeth Krieger Holmes in Toledo, Ohio.  The family, including her younger brother, Charles H. Holmes, lived for many years in the Lagrange and Bancroft area of Toledo near the Krieger family home as did several of the families of her mother’s siblings.  Charles and Elizabeth moved the family to the Homeville development in the West End as Marie was attending Woodward High School.  Although she was then out of the district, she was able to continue at Woodward until her graduation in 1943.

After graduation, Marie went to work as a clerk on the dock at the Autolite plant in North Toledo.

Marie always loved music and often went out dancing at the Trianon Ballroom and other venues around town, frequently accompanied by one or more of her several cousins.

Marie met Paul Tuohy shortly before he enlisted in the Army Air Corps and they corresponded all through his deployment in the South Pacific.  When he returned from the war, they became a couple and were married in 1947. 

For several years, Marie stayed home with their children, Ronald, born in 1948, and Janet, born in 1952.  After taking some business classes, Marie got a job as a clerk in the local office of the Paul Revere Insurance Company.  Marie eventually rose to the position of office manager. She was very proud  of the multiple commendations received for the efficiency of her office and for new procedures that were implemented company wide.  She was also recognized for exposing the financial malfeasance of two local general managers.  When the Toledo office closed, Marie transferred to the Cincinnati office.   

Along with her formal employment, Marie also did bookkeeping for Paul’s auction business and often clerked for sales.  When Paul became involved with agencies serving disabled people, Marie often accompanied him to various functions and acquired many friends in this community.

She had the gift of a beautiful, and very powerful, soprano voice, which she further developed through some years of training. Wherever she lived, she sang in church choirs and community choruses, often as a soloist. 

In retirement Marie and Paul enjoyed theater and traveling. In 2005, when Marie could no longer care for Paul on her own, they moved to Rochester, New York near their daughter. After Paul’s death, Marie continued to enjoy singing and was active in her senior living community for many years.

Marie was preceded in death by her husband, Paul, and survived by son, Ronald (Beth) Tuohy, daughter, Janet (Mike Ball) Tuohy, grandchildren Jared Higgins, Jamie Higgins, Nathaniel (En-Chieh Chao) Tuohy, and Conor (Alexis) Tuohy, and by four great grandchildren.