3月25日-3月29日，方蔚林教授赴日本大阪参加以世界友好与和平为主题的第23届世界诗歌大会。世界诗歌大会由国际桂冠诗人协会主办，每隔两年举办一次，旨在通过诗歌促进世界友好与和平。本届世界诗歌大会在日本大阪举行，有世界各国各地区的300多位诗人参加。在世界诗歌大会的诗歌大赛中，方蔚林教授的My Beard Grows Wildly for Longing获得一等奖，这一奖项是本次诗歌大赛的最高奖。
附获奖诗歌全文：
My Beard Grows Wildly for Longing
SHU, Ye (Alias FANG, Weilin)
Standing on a city skyscraper,
I listen to the sound of the wind.
In the heart of this concrete jungle,
I await a message from afar.
Together, the earth and clouds open,
As thoughts undulate like the rise and fall of mountains.
Tonight, my body opens,
Awaiting your moonlight to come illumine my mountains.
Tonight my body opens.
One after another the rivers, the mountains and the earth opens, all awaiting the moon’s rise.
When the wind comes from afar,
The tide will ebb and flow,
And dust will swirl across the plateau.
When the wind blows from afar,
My forest will undulate and croon.
Like my bushy beard,
The trees grow wildly for longing.
They await your moonlight,
To shine upon the rivers, the mountains and the earth.