四个四重奏:第2期 焚毁的诺顿(2)
There they were, dignified, invisible,
它们就在那儿，神态庄严而不可窥见，
Moving without pressure, over the dead leaves,
在秋天的燠热里，穿过颤动的空气，
In the autumn heat, through the vibrant air,
从容不迫地越过满地枯叶，
And the bird called, in response to
鸟儿在呼唤，于那隐藏在灌木丛中
The unheard music hidden in the shrubbery,
不可闻见的音乐相应和，
And the unseen eyebeam crossed, for the roses
那没有被人看见的眼光转过去了，因为玫瑰
Had the look of flowers that are looked at.
露出了花容美姿已被人窥见的神色。
There they were as our guests, accepted and accepting.
它们在那儿仿佛是我们的客人，受到我们的接待也在接待我们。
So we moved, and they, in a formal pattern,
它们彬彬有礼地伫立在空寂的小径旁。
Along the empty alley, into the box circle,
于是我们继续前行，走进黄杨木的圆形树丛，
To look down into the drained pool.
俯身观看那干涸的水池。
Dry the pool, dry concrete, brown edged,
干涸的水池、干涸的混凝土、围着褐色的边，
And the pool was filled with water out of sunlight,
水池里注满了阳光变幻的水，
And the lotos rose, quietly, quietly,
荷花升起了，悄悄地，悄悄地，
The surface glittered out of heart of light,
池面从光芒的中心闪现，
And they were behind us, reflected in the pool.
而它们在我们身后，映照在池中。
Then a cloud passed, and the pool was empty.
接着云朵飘过，水池又变为空虚。
Go, said the bird, for the leaves were full of children,
去吧，鸟儿说，因为树叶丛中躲满了孩子
Hidden excitedly, containing laughter.
他们兴冲冲地藏在那儿，忍住了笑声。
Go, go, go, said the bird: human kind
去吧，去吧，去吧，鸟儿说：人类
Cannot bear very much reality.
忍受不了太多的现实。
Time past and time future
过去的时间和未来的时间
What might have been and what has been
过去可能存在的和已经存在的
Point to one end, which is always present.
都指向一个始终存在在终点。