After we had loved each other intently,

在我们曾经热切地相爱后，

we heard notes tumbling together,

听见音符一齐滚落下来，

in late winter,  and we heard ice

晚冬里，我们听见冰块

falling from the ends of twigs.

坠落于嫩枝之端。

The notes abandon so much as they move.

音乐移动时，它们放弃了多少东西。

They are the food not eaten, the comfort

它们是未食过的食品，未享受过的

not taken, the lies not spoken.

舒适，未说过的谎言。

The music is my attention to you.

音乐，是我对你的注意力。

And when the music came again,

而当那音乐再次降临，

later in the day, I saw tears in your eyes.

白日的晚些时候，我看见你含着泪。

I saw you turn your face away

我看见你把脸侧向一边

so that the others would not see.

为了不让别人看见。

When men and women come together,

当男人和女人结合到一起时，

how much they have to abandon! wrens

他们得放弃多少东西！鹪鹩们

make their nests of fancy threads

构筑它们想象交织和琴弦终止

and string ends, animals

的巢穴，动物们

abandon all their money each year.

每一年放弃它们所有的财富

What is it that men and women leave?

男人与女人留下的是什么？

Harder than wrens’ doing, they have

比鹪鹩更辛苦地工作，他们得

to abandon their longing for the perfect.

放弃他们对完美的渴望。

The inner nest not made by instinct

那内心的不是由本能构筑而成的巢穴

will never be quite round,

永远也不会很圆。

and each has to enter the nest

每只鸟都得进入

made by the other imperfect bird.

那由其他不完美的鸟所构筑成的巢穴。