Red was your colour.

红是你的颜色。

If not red, then white. But red

不是红，就是白。但是红

Was what you wrapped around you.

是你裹着自己身体的颜色。

Blood-red. Was it blood?

血红。是血吗？

Was it red-ochre, for warming the dead?

它是温暖死者的红赭土？

Haematite to make immortal

它是使宝贵的祖传遗骨，家人的尸骸

The precious heirloom bones, the family bones.

不朽的赤血石。

When you had your way finally

当你最后采用你的办法走了时

Our room was red. A judgement chamber.

我们的房间是红色。一间审判室。

Shut casket for gems. The carpet of blood

盖子盖好的珍宝盒。血红的地毯印上了暗黑色纹路，

Patterned with darkenings, congealments.

像是凝结的血块。红宝石颜色的

The curtains — ruby corduroy blood,

灯芯绒窗帘挂在那里，如同血的瀑布，

Sheer blood-falls from ceiling to floor.

从天花板直泻到地板上。

The cushions the same. The same

坐垫也是如此。同样，沿窗台

Raw carmine along the window-seat.

是胭脂红色。一间令人心悸的房间。

A throbbing cell. Aztec altar — temple.

阿兹台克人的祭坛——圣殿。

Only the bookshelves escaped into whiteness.

只有一张张白书架避开了血红。

And outside the window

窗户外边

Poppies thin and wrinkle-frail

单薄的皱而脆弱的罂粟花

As the skin on blood,

如同血染了的皮肤；

Salvias, that your father named you after,

你父亲用来给你命名的撒尔维亚草，

Like blood lobbing from the gash,

红得像伤口里涌出来的血；

And roses, the heart’s last gouts,

还有红玫瑰，心脏的最后一滩血，

Catastrophic, arterial, doomed.

动脉流出的灾难性的必死无疑的血。

Your velvet long full skirt, a swathe of blood,

你的天鹅绒长裙，血染的包扎布，

A lavish burgandy.

深红如勃艮第红葡萄酒。

Your lips a dipped, deep crimson.

你的嘴唇，一抹深红。

You revelled in red.

你陶醉在红色里。

I felt it raw — like crisp gauze edges

我感到剧痛，像摸到刚包扎好正变硬的

Of a stiffening wound. I could touch

伤口上的纱布。我能触摸到

The open vein in it, the crusted gleam.

纱布里开口的血管，隐现的痂斑。

Everything you painted you painted white

你把所有的东西先打上白底，

Then splashed it with roses, defeated it,

然后泼上玫瑰红，压住白色，

Leaned over it, dripping roses,

俯身于白色，滴下玫瑰红，

Weeping roses, and more roses,

哭泣着流出玫瑰红，愈来愈多的

Then sometimes, among them, a little blue bird.

玫瑰红，有时在玫瑰红之中画一只小蓝鸟。

Blue was better for you. Blue was wings.

蓝色对你来说比较好。蓝色

Kingfisher blue silks from San Francisco

是翅膀。旧金山买来的

Folded your pregnancy

翠鸟蓝绸衣包住你妊娠的身体。

In crucible caresses.

在严肃的抚摸里。

Blue was your kindly spirit — not a ghoul

蓝色是你和蔼的灵魂－不是食尸鬼

But electrified, a guardian, thoughtful.

而是受震惊的考虑周全的护卫者。

In the pit of red

在红色坟墓里

You hid from the bone-clinic whiteness.

你躲开了骨科诊所的白色。

But the jewel you lost was blue.

但你失落的宝石是蓝色。