That summer day, sunlight spilled onto the car,

那个夏天落在一车阳光里

splashing wild asters by the road, their cheeks plumped

溅出沿途野菊，鼓着小腮帮

as they watched us disappear.

看我们远去

We picked up speed. No one

加大油门，没有谁

spoke her name. Stones whipped from the dirt road

再提起她了，地面的风裹起碎石

beneath a hazy drift of bone ash.

我看见公路上游着骨灰的薄光

Father touched my shoulder, pointing

父亲抱着我的肩膀，指点我

at a field of soybeans. When the car pulled up

辨认大豆的叶子，停车时

I got out and felt the beans. Small,

我摸到它们的眼泪，还很小

hard, their long green eyes swelling in the pods.

很硬，鼓在狭长的绿眼角里

Clouds of pink butterflies swerved and danced. One

成群的粉蝶拐弯抹角，也有一只

clinging to a weedstalk fanned its shivery wings.

搂住草杆，尽量贴紧发抖的翅膀

Oh, it bore her liver spots, those

哦，我认出了她的老年斑，这些

stains she cursed. At my first step

她咒骂过的斑点，我走近一步

it folded up her face and flew.

她的脸就折叠着飞开了

Bent over, father emerged from a corn field.

父亲从玉米地里弯腰出来，已经

Buried well, he said, and soon

埋好了，他说，再过些日子

thick roots will build her fortress.

会有粗根筑一座碉堡给她

Asters the whole way back,

回去的时候，也是野菊引路

and a gleaming beetle splattered on the windshield.

一只兜风的金龟子在挡风玻璃上撞死

Father held me. No one spoke her name.

父亲抱着我，谁都不再提起她了