对此没什么话好说，对一切——

Nothing to be said about it, and everything—

变化的变化，近一些的，更远的：

The change of changes, closer or farther away:

隔壁的金毛猎犬死了，它叫伽仕，

The Golden Retriever next door, Gussie, is dead,

阿沙也死了，沿路第四家的可卡犬

Like Sandy, the Cocker Spaniel from three doors down

在我还小的时候就死了；每一天，

Who died when I was small; and every day

存在我记忆中的，都从消隐转为死灭。

Things that were in my memory fade and die.

种种说法消失了：开始，人人都忘了

Phrases die out: first, everyone forgets

门钉是什么；然后过了那么几十年，

What doornails are; then after certain decades

变成了死的比喻，“像门钉一样死透透”

Asa dead metaphor, “dead as a doornail”flickers

忽闪着消隐。但我认识的一个人快死了——

And fades away. But someone I know is dying—

尽管人们可能会油滑地说，“人人都会死去，”

And though one might say glibly, “everyone is,”

但步速的不同造就绝对的不同。

The different pace makes the difference absolute.

我们呼吸的空气中有看不见的微小孢子，

The tiny invisible spores in the air we breathe,

它们并无伤害地落在我们的饮用水上，

That settle harmlessly on our drinking water

我们的皮肤上，碰巧连在一起，

And on our skin, happen to come together

因为森林地面有某些恰当的条件，

With certain conditions on the forest floor,

或者甚至只是草坪阴凉的角落——

Or even a shady corner of the lawn—

一夜间，苍白多肉的茎聚在一起，

And overnight the fleshy, pale stalks gather,

没有叶子没有花朵，毫无颜色地生长；

The colorless growth without a leaf or flower;

花的茎干周围，夏草因为持续的压力

And around the stalks, the summer grass keeps growing

所以不断生长，就像脸上的胡须

With steady pressure, like the insistent whiskers

在下一次刮胡子之前那么执着，

That grow between shaves on a face, the nails

就像脚趾和手指以自己卑微的步伐，

Growing and dying from the toes and fingers

生长、死亡，像无神经的飞蛾

At their own humble pace, oblivious

健忘，过着自己的一晚或两晚——

As the nerveless moths, that live their night or two—

虽然一颗明亮的灵魂就像一只飞蛾，

Though like a moth a bright soul keeps on beating,

在魔怪的嘴里无聊而不耐烦，也会继续振翅。

Bored and impatient in the monster’s mouth.