Suddenly three angels appeared

三個天使突然出現

right here by the bakery on St. George Street.

在這裏，在聖喬治街這家面包店旁。

Not another census bureau survey,

不是又來做人口普查吧，

one tired man sighed.

一個疲倦的男人嘆息道。

No, the first angel said patiently,

不是的，第一個天使耐心地說，

we just wanted to see

我們只是想看看

what your lives have become,

你們的生活怎樣了，

the flavor of your days and why

日子的滋味如何，以及為什麽

your nights are marked by restlessness and fear.

你們夜裏總是充滿不安和恐懼。

That’s right, fear, a lovely, dreamy-eyed

沒錯，恐懼，一位可愛、眼睛像做夢的

woman replied; but I know why.

女人回答；但我知道為什麽。

The labors of the human mind have faltered.

人類的腦力撐不住了。

They seek help and support

他們尋求他們找不到的

they can’t find. Sir, just take a look

幫助和支持。長官，請看一看

—she called the angel “Sir”!—

——她把天使叫做「長官」！——

at Wittgenstein. Our sages

維特根斯坦吧。我們的哲人

and leaders are melancholic madmen

和領袖都是憂郁的瘋子，

and know even less than us

他們知道的甚至比我們

ordinary people (but she wasn’t

普通人還少（但她可

ordinary).

不普通）。

Then too, said one boy

還有呢，一個正在學

who was learning to play the violin, evenings

小提琴的少年說，晚上

are just an empty carton,

都只是一個空紙盒，

a casket minus mysteries,

一個沒有神秘的棺材，

while at dawn the cosmos seems as

而在黎明時，宇宙看上去

parched and foreign as a TV screen.

像電視屏幕般枯燥和陌生。

And besides, those who love music for itself

此外，那些愛音樂本身的人

are few and far between.

少之又少。

Others spoke up and their laments

其他人紛紛发言，悲嘆聲

surged into a swelling sonata of wrath.

洶湧而來，膨脹成憤怒的奏鳴曲。

If you gentlemen want to know the truth,

如果先生你們想知道真相，

one tall student yelled—he’d

一個高個子學生喊道——他剛

just lost his mother—we’ve had enough

失去母親——我們已受夠了

of death and cruelty, persecution, disease,

死亡和殘忍、迫害、疾病，

and long spells of boredom still

毒蛇的眼睛般呆滯的

as a serpent’s eye. We’ve got too little earth

長久的沉悶。我們土地太少，

and too much fire. We don’t know who we are.

火太多。我們不知道我們是誰。

We’re lost in the forest, and black stars

我們迷失在森林裏，黑色的星星

move lazily above us as if

在我們頭頂上懶惰地移動，彷彿

they were only our dream.

它們只是我們的夢。

But still, the second angel mumbled shyly,

但是，第二個天使靦腆地應付道，

there’s always a little joy, and even beauty

總還有一點快樂，美的事物甚至

lies close at hand, beneath the bark

近在手邊，在每個時辰的

of every hour, in the quiet heart of concentration,

吠叫聲下，在專注安靜的心中，

and another person hides in each of us—

還有，我們每個人身上都隱藏另一個人——

universal, strong, invincible.

普遍，強大，不屈不撓。

Wild roses sometimes hold the scent

野玫瑰有時會散发

of childhood, and on holidays young girls

童年的味道，而在假日，少女們

go out walking just as they always have,

一如往常走到戶外散步，

and there’s something timeless

她們繞圍巾的樣子

in the way they wind their scarves.

帶有某種永恒的含義。

Memory lives in the ocean, in galloping blood,

記憶活在海洋裏，在奔騰的血中，

in black, burnt stones, in poems,

在黑色、燒燃的石頭裏，在詩中，

and in every quiet conversation.

在每一次安靜的談話中。

The world is the same as it always was,

世界跟原來一樣，

full of shadows and anticipation.

充滿陰影和期待。

He would have gone on talking, but the crowd

他原可以繼續這樣說下去，但是人群

was growing larger and waves

愈變愈大，無聲的

of mute rage spread

憤怒浪潮擴散

until at last the envoys rose lightly

直到使者們終於輕輕飄起，

into the air, whence, growing distant,

升入空中，他們逐漸遠去時

they gently repeated: peace be unto you,

繼續小聲重複：願你們平靜，

peace to the living, the dead, the unborn.

願生者、死者、未出生者平靜。

The third angel alone said nothing,

唯獨第三個天使一言不发，

for that was the angel of long silence.

因為他是長久沉默的天使。