Black velvet darkness, tufts of shredded clouds heading slow-

黑色天鹅绒般的黑暗，一簇簇的云朵缓缓地

ly up the coast, the lamp-like February snow moon the host

沿着海滩飘移，二月的雪月像神父举起的

the celebrant raises at the Consecration steady above the coast,

圣饼，在庄严的海岸闪闪发光，

transfiguring the empty sands of the Atlantic coast below.

改变了大西洋下面的水域。

I sat there transfixed as if in prayer, for once at peace

呆呆地坐在那里，好像我终于得到了平安，

with what I was surprised to have the sense this time round

这一次我对眼见有了判断力，

to see, the inner wars that for eighty years have ground

我一生中的所有，将我打倒在地

me down in history’ s nightmare drifting north northeast.

最后漂向东北偏东。

但是，有什么词语能够确切表达一个人的

What words, what notes can net what one feels in those too-brief

感动，在这些太过短暂的时刻？

blissful moments? Grasshopper transcendence, Williams called it,

诗人称之为，蚱蜢的超越*，

as he caught their translucent wings whirring up into the light

那些半透明的翅膀呼啸着飞入主日的光中

before the roar of those milling crowds forced their entry like some thief.

在客人*的呼喊像贼一样强行进入之前。

给我们兆头*，我们说，向我们展示我们想看到的。

Show us a sign, we say, show us what we think we want to see.

不过，我们知道这样的兆头会是什么吗？

Though, if you think about it, could we say what such a sign would be?

或者祝福就在我们面前，你和我，

Or is the thing we seek already there before us, for you and me,

我们真正需要看见的就是能够看见的眼睛？

and all we need to see that luminous gaze are the eyes to see?

译注

1. 辛格岛，Singer Island，是美国佛罗里达州大西洋沿岸的一个半岛。

2.诗人，指美国诗人威廉姆·卡洛斯·威廉姆斯（William Carlos Williams，1883年9月17日－1963年3月4日）。保罗·马里亚尼在威廉姆斯的传记中讨论过“蚱蜢的超越”这个用语。what Williams would call a grasshopper transcendence—up, up, and then back to earth again [...]" (Mariani, 197)上升，上升，然后又回到地上。

3.straighter ，很难翻译的一个词。保罗另有一首诗，也用到它，诗题为The Gods Who Come Among Us In the Guise of Strangers

4.当年法利赛人和撒都该人也曾求a sign ，参见：太16章1节:Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and testing Him asked that He would show them a sign from heaven. (Matthew16:1 NKJV)