As I Walked Out One Evening
by W. H. Auden
As I walked out one evening,
Walking down Bristol Street,
The crowds upon the pavement
Were fields of harvest wheat.
And down by the brimming river
I heard a lover sing
Under an arch of the railway:
'Love has no ending.
'I'll love you, dear, I'll love you
Till China and Africa meet,
And the river jumps over the mountain
And the salmon sing in the street,
'I'll love you till the ocean
Is folded and hung up to dry
And the seven stars go squawking
Like geese about the sky.
'The years shall run like rabbits,
For in my arms I hold
The Flower of the Ages,
And the first love of the world.'
But all the clocks in the city
Began to whirr and chime:
'O let not Time deceive you,
You cannot conquer Time.
'In the burrows of the Nightmare
Where Justice naked is,
Time watches from the shadow
And coughs when you would kiss.
'In headaches and in worry
Vaguely life leaks away,
And Time will have his fancy
To-morrow or to-day.
'Into many a green valley
Drifts the appalling snow;
Time breaks the threaded dances
And the diver's brilliant bow.
'O plunge your hands in water,
Plunge them in up to the wrist;
Stare, stare in the basin
And wonder what you've missed.
'The glacier knocks in the cupboard,
The desert sighs in the bed,
And the crack in the tea-cup opens
A lane to the land of the dead.
'Where the beggars raffle the banknotes
And the Giant is enchanting to Jack,
And the Lily-white Boy is a Roarer,
And Jill goes down on her back.
'O look, look in the mirror,
O look in your distress:
Life remains a blessing
Although you cannot bless.
'O stand, stand at the window
As the tears scald and start;
You shall love your crooked neighbour
With your crooked heart.'
It was late, late in the evening,
The lovers they were gone;
The clocks had ceased their chiming,
And the deep river ran on.
From Another Time by W. H. Auden, published by Random House. Copyright ? 1940 W. H. Auden, renewed by The Estate of W. H. Auden. Used by permission of Curtis Brown, Ltd.
晚间我出门漫步
晚间我出门漫步，
走在布里斯托大街，
人们聚在人行道上
像是麦子待收的田野。
顺着满盈的河流
我听见动情的人歌唱
就在铁轨桥拱下边：
“爱情不会消亡。
“我要爱你，亲爱的，我要爱你
直到中国与非洲会合，
直到那河流跳过高山
还有鲑鱼在街上唱歌，
“我要爱你直到大海
被卷起被晾到干涸，
直到北斗七星嘎嘎叫唤
变身天上的飞鹅。
“年月将如兔儿快跑，
而我仍抱着满怀
过去的鲜花，
还有那世上第一声爱。”
但是城里全部的钟
开始合奏轰鸣：
“噢，别被时间骗了，
它是你们无法战赢。
“那赤裸裸的公正
居在恶梦的洞穴，
时间在阴影中窥探，
当你们亲吻他便低咳。
“在头疼中，在焦虑里
懵懂的生命渗漏流失，
时间却总有他的喜好
明朝或是今日。
“绿意盎然的山谷
突变成骇人的风暴；
时间打断那纤细的舞步
和潜水者精彩的一跳。
“噢，把你的手没入水中，
直到漫过手腕；
凝视，凝视那盆底
惊讶于有什么被你遗忘。
沙漠在床头感叹，
冰川撞入碗橱，
茶杯上的裂缝张开
一条通向死亡之地的小路。
在那里乞丐贩卖抽彩的纸票
巨人迷醉了杰克
白种的男孩咆哮不止，
吉儿吮舔着她的身后。
噢，看哪，看那镜子里，
噢，看你们的哀愁；
纵使你无力祝福
生活存留了一份祝佑。
噢，站起来，站到窗前
泪水发烫开始流淌；
你将爱你畸形的邻人
用你那畸形的心脏。”
很晚了，很深的夜晚，
情侣们都已离去，
钟声中断了它们的奏响，
河中深流向前继续。
作者 / 奥登
翻译 / 照朗
