Yang Wanli's ancient poem on a small pond is as follows:

"A Small Pond" - Song Dynasty: Yang Wanli

The spring's eye is silent and cherishes the fine flow, and the shade of the tree loves the water to be clear and soft.

The small lotus is only showing its tip, and the dragonflies are already on top of it.

The spring is silent because it can't bear to let go of the fine water, and the shade of the trees reflecting the water loves the soft scenery on a sunny day. A small lotus leaf has just emerged from the surface of the water with a sharp tip, and a small dragonfly is standing on it.

Appreciation of "Small Pond"

This poem expresses the author's love of life. Through the description of the spring, shade, lotus and dragonflies in the small pond, it depicts a simple, natural and vivid picture full of life with unlimited vitality: the spring quietly oozes out a trickle of water as if it cherishes the crystal water;

The green trees love to bring their own water to the surface in the soft atmosphere of a sunny day. The green tree loves to integrate its shadow into the pool water in the soft atmosphere of a sunny day; the tender lotus leaves have just extended their sharp corners out of the water, and there have long been mischievous dragonflies standing lightly on them.

The whole poem focuses on the "small", vividly and meticulously describing the vivid new scene of life and dynamism in a small pool in early summer, which is now used to describe the newcomers who are making their debut.

Because the buds of the lotus flowers seem so small in the whole pond, but there are already dragonflies staying on them, and the sharp corners can be regarded as new things and even more as newborn young people, and the dragonflies are the roles of appreciating them.

Author's Introduction

Yang Wanli (October 29, 1127-June 15, 1206), Tingxiu, Chengzhai. He was a native of Jishui, Jizhou (present-day Jishui County, Jiangxi Province), in the village of Jiantang, Huangqiao Town. He was a famous poet and minister of the Southern Song Dynasty, and was known as one of the "Four Great Poets of the Middle Ages" together with Lu You, You Zhuan and Fan Chengda. Because of the Song Guangzong had for his personal calligraphy "Chengzhai" two words, so scholars call him "Mr. Chengzhai".