North is east, south is west,

北即是東，南即是西

first is under and over

開始是底下，上面

the last—all of our spells

是結束——符咒灑光了

are spilled and lost.

我們失去了魔力。

We are the swallows you see,

我們是你眼中所見的燕子

whose tongues are cut,

有被裁過的舌頭，

whose wings are clipped,

被修剪過的翅膀，

bunched on a wire.

挨擠著棲在電線上。

And we are the spinster angels

我們是天使中的老處女

driven from God:

被上帝驅逐：

we have saved our scissors

我們保全了我們的剪刀

and kept our needles—

攜帶了我們的針——

four old women who knit

四個老婦人在紡織

and knit the winds,

紡織著風，

and then in a muttering rage

然後隨一陣狂怒的咕噥

unthread the clouds.

把線從雲彩中抽去。

We are done with porches

我們不再於門廊上

to sit on, finished

靜坐，也不再與

with trees and branches.

樹和枝椏打交道。

Daylight for us was bad,

日光對我們有害，

but night will be better:

夜晚則更加美好：

star and planet falling,

星辰紛紛墜落，

lion and scorpion down…

獅子與天蠍西沉……

Think of your rooms

想想你的房間吧

and your furniture,

還有你的家具，

make up your beds

疊好你的床

and pocket your keys:

揣起你的鑰匙：

You that have shadows

你們當中有影子的

will keep them, you

將繼續與之為伴，你們

without shadows will die:

沒影子的即將死去：

Here is the glass we look

這塊玻璃，我們透過它

through, and these

來觀看，這些孔洞

are the holes we make:

全由我們製造。

And now the threads we warp

再看我們盤繞、扭織的

and twist, the words

絲線，我們啐出的

we spit, the spell we throw…

詞語，我們擲出的符咒……