That she was not pretty she knew.

她知道她并不漂亮。

The flowers delivered into her hands post-concert by the young girl, pretty, would be acknowledged only. To display was to invite comparison.

音乐会结束后送花的女孩长得好看，人们会只为她喝彩。舞台即擂台。

Skilled at withholding, she withheld; it was a kind of giving. As when meditation is a kind of action,

擅长于忍耐，她隐忍不发；忍耐即是一种奉献，正如沉思是一种行动，

a way of leaning into music the way one leans into winter wind, the way a mule leans into a harness,

这行动倚向音乐就像冬天倚向寒风，骡子倚向挽具，

the way a lover leans into the point of deepest penetration.

就像情人倚向插入的最深点。

After a ship’s prow cuts the water, the water rushes back twice as hard.

就像船犁开水，那水以双倍力量反冲。