三個天使突然出現
Suddenly three angels appeared
在這裏，在聖喬治街這家面包店旁。
right here by the bakery on St. George Street.
不是又來做人口普查吧，
Not another census bureau survey,
一個疲倦的男人嘆息道。
one tired man sighed.
不是的，第一個天使耐心地說，
No, the first angel said patiently,
我們只是想看看
we just wanted to see
你們的生活怎樣了，
what your lives have become,
日子的滋味如何，以及為什麽
the flavor of your days and why
你們夜裏總是充滿不安和恐懼。
your nights are marked by restlessness and fear.
沒錯，恐懼，一位可愛、眼睛像做夢的
That’s right, fear, a lovely, dreamy-eyed
女人回答；但我知道為什麽。
woman replied; but I know why.
人類的腦力撐不住了。
The labors of the human mind have faltered.
他們尋求他們找不到的
They seek help and support
幫助和支持。長官，請看一看
they can’t find. Sir, just take a look
——她把天使叫做「長官」！——
—she called the angel “Sir”!—
維特根斯坦吧。我們的哲人
at Wittgenstein. Our sages
和領袖都是憂郁的瘋子，
and leaders are melancholic madmen
他們知道的甚至比我們
and know even less than us
普通人還少（但她可
ordinary people (but she wasn’t
不普通）。
ordinary).
還有呢，一個正在學
Then too, said one boy
小提琴的少年說，晚上
who was learning to play the violin, evenings
都只是一個空紙盒，
are just an empty carton,
一個沒有神秘的棺材，
a casket minus mysteries,
而在黎明時，宇宙看上去
while at dawn the cosmos seems as
像電視屏幕般枯燥和陌生。
parched and foreign as a TV screen.
此外，那些愛音樂本身的人
And besides, those who love music for itself
少之又少。
are few and far between.
其他人紛紛发言，悲嘆聲
Others spoke up and their laments
洶湧而來，膨脹成憤怒的奏鳴曲。
surged into a swelling sonata of wrath.
如果先生你們想知道真相，
If you gentlemen want to know the truth,
一個高個子學生喊道——他剛
one tall student yelled—he’d
失去母親——我們已受夠了
just lost his mother—we’ve had enough
死亡和殘忍、迫害、疾病，
of death and cruelty, persecution, disease,
毒蛇的眼睛般呆滯的
and long spells of boredom still
長久的沉悶。我們土地太少，
as a serpent’s eye. We’ve got too little earth
火太多。我們不知道我們是誰。
and too much fire. We don’t know who we are.
我們迷失在森林裏，黑色的星星
We’re lost in the forest, and black stars
在我們頭頂上懶惰地移動，彷彿
move lazily above us as if
它們只是我們的夢。
they were only our dream.
但是，第二個天使靦腆地應付道，
But still, the second angel mumbled shyly,
總還有一點快樂，美的事物甚至
there’s always a little joy, and even beauty
近在手邊，在每個時辰的
lies close at hand, beneath the bark
吠叫聲下，在專注安靜的心中，
of every hour, in the quiet heart of concentration,
還有，我們每個人身上都隱藏另一個人——
and another person hides in each of us—
普遍，強大，不屈不撓。
universal, strong, invincible.
野玫瑰有時會散发
Wild roses sometimes hold the scent
童年的味道，而在假日，少女們
of childhood, and on holidays young girls
一如往常走到戶外散步，
go out walking just as they always have,
她們繞圍巾的樣子
and there’s something timeless
帶有某種永恒的含義。
in the way they wind their scarves.
記憶活在海洋裏，在奔騰的血中，
Memory lives in the ocean, in galloping blood,
在黑色、燒燃的石頭裏，在詩中，
in black, burnt stones, in poems,
在每一次安靜的談話中。
and in every quiet conversation.
世界跟原來一樣，
The world is the same as it always was,
充滿陰影和期待。
full of shadows and anticipation.
他原可以繼續這樣說下去，但是人群
He would have gone on talking, but the crowd
愈變愈大，無聲的
was growing larger and waves
憤怒浪潮擴散
of mute rage spread
直到使者們終於輕輕飄起，
until at last the envoys rose lightly
升入空中，他們逐漸遠去時
into the air, whence, growing distant,
繼續小聲重複：願你們平靜，
they gently repeated: peace be unto you,
願生者、死者、未出生者平靜。
peace to the living, the dead, the unborn.
唯獨第三個天使一言不发，
The third angel alone said nothing,
因為他是長久沉默的天使。
for that was the angel of long silence.