Bilingual Readings of Summer ‘22 Issue

Poetry Lab Shanghai

One poem, two worlds.

  1. 07/24/2022

    9. Nocturne - 杰

    nocturne translated by PLS along the bank you would mistake the willow twigs as your own feet and start flying it’s actually the light heart that catches the spring in the wind as it pounds upward bursts of music bursts of silky warmth bow down to tell you to forgo formalities keeping your hand afloat at a level with a margin of error of a few millimetres  we greet as we watch the way to not fall behind to head east to the pavilion together the burnt scent of fragrance of flowers in the late spring of the spring late in arrival unfolding its timidity in full plain petals thin and soft biding farewell to this and to that have all been dismissed there was only a tenth of dusk left the rest belongs to the evening alone the mixture of dazzling ersatz orange pineapple pear first fills the light bulb then bubbling bubbling into a whole fish wandering around fingers holding orange cellophane-wrap-green river water kneaded and rubbed then slowly smoothed out to the silver banks reflecting the unwhole brilliance of clothing shop hardware shop and barbershop night is an enormous dark ship anchored to the head then what stands affront is the towering captain then there should be a multitude of boats above the sides of which crowding into a giant roar oh you how come you are also in the crowd are you also here to see this floating monstrosity in this steep night we even recognise each other among the endless crowds of people I fell from the window of a riverside hotel because the wind blows the other way I smelled you in this wind so I swam across without any hesitation do people cluster here just to witness the boat after boat of dark scenery no no who doesn’t swim blindly downward it’s not the beauty of night I believe there is silent gold all over this ship it just needs to be shone over even though being swapped this night is no longer the one I still believe that the valuable not to be revealed treasures always bury themselves in the dark trunks and stay buried only through this way can we explain what mastership the night dark as such carries there must be something that balaclava-ed across the night already half spent in a blink strange how you live here don’t even mention how time flies and that it’s difficult to meet by chance where is that beautiful guy who used to snuggle up to you like an oar that never leaves the boat he either dipped into someone else’s water or swam to another bank it turns out these kind of obvious fruitless events first keep adorning night by night then turn you into a green mist of luxuriant foliage like a landscape tree free of the burden of fruits how I am scared of being girdled by your lushness like the chirping of birds I already wish to see the summer once summer is really here the summer filled with nightingales and partridges is definitely not my abode the night is all my sluggishness I flow toward all your sluggishness is a heavy night deep yet dull night doesn’t mean the casual profundity on the pointer there must be something on the great ship the pile of my flowery verses my flowery verses piling up how I wish to gift them to you piece by piece how to unload them you touch the darkness over this ship only to feel it without the desire to examine the goods thus is the night night-ing over and over again without a place to moor the next day the sky is blue and cloudless when our pavilion just starts to glimmer there’s a sudden parting between the shrike and the swallow in the centre of the ground is the tiresome reed instrument surrounded by new leaves mirroring shadows you are far gone too far away now whereas me I am also broken into pieces, slenderly with a clunk

    5 min
  2. 07/24/2022

    9. 夜曲 - 莹

    夜曲 作者:匪石 沿着堤岸你也会把柳条错当是自己的脚飞行起来 其实是轻扑扑的心往上一努抓住了颤动的风中之簧 一阵阵乐声一阵阵游丝般的暖意压低了身子叫你免礼 将你递来的手不相上下地浮在正负几毫米误差之内 大家一边寒暄一边瞻顾着不要落伍一道往东边凉亭走 暮春春暮的馥馥花油即将告罄的焦味坦然露怯 素色花箔们薄薄的细软谢了这个谢了那个一应被遣散 那时已是十分之一的黄昏剩下的全部是夜晚 美丽的人造橘子菠萝梨的混合光色先是充盈灯泡 再就泡泡泡泡地吹起整个鱼行街了伸手可见橙黄的五指 玻璃糖纸绿的河水揉揉搓搓再向银边的两岸慢慢捋平 倒映着的是全不成形的服装店五金店美发店的烂漫 夜是一条巨大的黑船停在头顶那么眼前就是巍峨的船酋 那么上空应该泊着许许多多船轰轰轰舷侧铁板发出挨挤声 你啊你怎么也在大伙中呢也是来观摩这庞然的漂浮物吗 高耸之夜竟然能在见首不见尾的成群结队里相互认出 我是从河滨的旅馆窗上落下来的因为这和风往那面吹 知道这风里有你的气味所以就不假思索的溯过来 人们交熙接攘难不成就是为了亲睹这一船一船乌压压的风景 不是的不是的谁还不是盲从着往下游去哪里是爱夜色 我相信这船上载的都是鸦雀无声的黄金只差烛光一照 假使被调包这个夜晚已经不是那个夜晚我仍相信船上的贵重 不便打开的珍宝总是藏在暗暗的箱子里埋头渡过埋头渡过 这样才解释得通如此漆夜背着我们的是何密意幽悰 一定有什么蒙着面过去了打个哈欠的时间夜就旋踵过半 怪的是你怎么住这儿呢可别说天地如逆旅动辄如参商之类的 你那漂亮的夜夜偎倚在你身边形同舟楫的家伙呢 他呀要么就是一脚涉入别的水里要么就是拢向它岸了 原来又是这种如花脱萼的无果怪事先是一夜一夜点缀 再就使你枝柯扶疏得绿雾一样像是不为繁实所累的景观树 多怕自己又鸟语般被你茏葱围住啊我已经想见夏天 一旦真的夏天了又是夜莺又是鹧鸪的夏天啊绝非我栖所 夜是我全部的呆滞我流向你的全部呆滞为笨重的夜 深而沉的夜不是指针上说说就深沉了必是有东西在巨轮上面 我那绮语堆叠我堆堆叠叠的绮语多想一匹一匹地裁给你 怎么卸下来呢你摸着这船的黑只是摸毫无验货的心愿 就是这样夜了无数回都无处系泊的夜第二天碧空如洗 我们的凉亭才刚浅浅发亮时一边是劳一边是燕正豁然分开 中间是疲歇在地的笙竽四围是影子一一对应的嫩叶 你已经很远很远了我呢我也当的一声薄薄地碎成碎片

    5 min

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One poem, two worlds.