Like this and like that

Apartment-life may be like a henhouse
in the middle of a concrete jungle,
but there's plenty of sunlight comes in
and it certainly can't be compared
to Diogenes's barrel.

In the open spaces front and back
trees stand here and there
and as they change with the seasons
they allow an experience of the wonders of nature
while a few chrysanthemums and roses
equally enthrall my soul.

Strolling on the river banks where wild plants grow
and gazing out at the River Han
is my daily task
and now I have become a single drop of water
within its flow
so that there is nothing I can call myself.

Only the people I meet indoors or out
may seem a little out of breath
like athletes running in a stadium
but that too will change!
The problem is that when I was young
the folks at home were too easy-going.

Like this and like that
my life nears its close
and even death that I used to dread
has now come to seem cozy like a mother's hug.