The Two
我们俩
W.H.Auden
李文东 草译 liwendong@china.com
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You are the town and we are the clock.
你是城镇，我们就是镇子里的钟
We are the guardians of the gate in the rock,
我们是石头入口的守门翁
The two.
我们两个
On your left and on your right,
在你的左侧，在你的右边
In the day and in the night,
在黑夜，也在白天
We are watching you.
我们在注视着你，时时刻刻
Wiser not to ask just what has occurred
明智点，不要问刚才有什么
To them who disobeyed our word;
降临给不听我们话的家伙；
To those
对他们来说
We were the whirlpool,we were the reef,
我们曾是漩涡，是暗礁
We were the formal nightmare,grief
我们是可怖的恶梦，与不幸
And the unlucky rose.
和那不走运的玫瑰花朵
Climb up the crane,learn the sailor's words
爬上高架，学说水手们的话
When the ships from the islands laden with birds
Come in;
当大船从岛屿，满载着鸟儿们回到了家
Tell your stories of fishing and other men's wives,
讲讲捕鱼中的故事，谈谈别人的老婆
The expansive dreams of constricted lives,
在灯影摇曳的酒馆，把有限生命里的无限梦想说说
In the lighted inn.
But do not imagine we do not know,
但是千万不可假设我们没听说
Or that what you hide with such care won't show
或者你精心掩饰的会逃过
At a glance:
我们的耳目
Nothing is done,nothing is said,
即使你什么都没做，什么也没说
But don't make the mistake of believing us dead;
但也千万别犯这样的错，认为我们已经死了；
I shouldn't dance.
我不能跳舞。
We are afraid in that case you'll have a fall;
我们担心，如果那样的话，你会摔倒；
We've been watching you over the garden wall
我们一直在盯着你，透过花园墙头的花草，
For hours;
已经好几个时刻；
The sky is darkening like a stain;
天渐渐变暗，像片黑色污迹
Something is going to fall like rain,
有东西就要跌落，像雨将临大地
And it won't be flowers.
那不会是花朵
When the green field comes off like a lid,
当绿色的野地像壶盖儿开敞
Revealing what was much better hid——
露出的东西最好本该是掩藏
Unpleasant:
令人不悦：
And look,behind you without a sound
看啊，在你身后，悄无声息
The woods have come up and are standing round
树木都已走近，在你身边聚集
in deadly crescent.
形状是那死一般的弯月
The bolt is sliding in its groove;
门闩从凹槽里，正在滑开
Outside the window is the black remov-
黑衣搬尸工的车停在窗外
-er's van:
And now with sudden swift emergence
现在，突然急速来临
Come the hooded women,the hump-backed surgeon
驼背的医生，和戴着口罩的女人
And the Scissor Man.
还有那剪刀手也在。
This might happen any day;
这会发生，在任何一天；
So be careful what you say
所以，你要把嘴巴看严。
And do:
还有你的做法：
Be clean,be tidy,oil the lock,
要干净，要整洁，给锁头上油，
Weed the garden,wind the clock;
给花园除草，给钟拧上发条；
Remember the Two.
记着，我们俩
--
自由飞鸟, 羽翼光芒
