Sand and Foam 沙与沫 （8）

作者：Kahlil Gibran（纪伯伦）

译文：冰心

配乐：《沉醉于风中》 - S.E.N.S

诵读：Bryan

Trees are poems that the earth writes upon the sky. We fell them down and turn them into paper that we may record our emptiness.

树木是大地写上天空中的诗。我们把它们砍下造纸，让我们可以把我们的空洞记录下来。

Should you care to write (and only the saints know why you should) you must needs have knowledge and art and music -- the knowledge of the music of words, the art of being artless, and the magic of loving your readers.

如果你要写作（只有圣人才晓得你为什么要写作），你必须有知识、艺术和魔术——字句的音乐的知识，不矫揉造作的艺术，和热爱你读者的魔术。

They dip their pens in our hearts and think they are inspired.

他们把笔蘸在我们的心怀里，就认为他们已经得了灵感了。

Should a tree write its autobiography it would not be unlike the history of a race.
如果一棵树也写自传的话，它不会不像一个民族的历史。

If I were to choose between the power of writing a poem and the ecstasy of a poem unwritten, I would choose the ecstasy. It is better poetry.
如果我在“写诗的能力”和“未写成诗的欢乐”之间选择的话，我就要选那欢乐。因为欢乐是更好的诗。

But you and all my neighbors agree that I always choose badly.
但是你和我所有的邻居，都一致地说我总是不会选择。

Poetry is not an opinion expressed. It is a song that rises from a bleeding wound or a smiling mouth.
诗不是一种表白出来的意见。它是从一个伤口或是一个笑口涌出的一首歌曲。

Words are timeless. You should utter them or write them with a knowledge of their timelessness.
言语是没有时间性的。在你说它或是写它的时候应该懂得它的特点。

A POET IS a dethroned king sitting among the ashes of his palace trying to fashion an image out of the ashes.

诗人是一个退位的君王，坐在他的宫殿的灰烬里，想用残灰捏出一个形象。

Poetry is a deal of joy and pain and wonder, with a dash of the dictionary.
诗是欢乐、痛苦和惊奇穿插着词汇的一场交道。

In vain shall a poet seek the mother of the songs of his heart.
一个诗人要想寻找他心里诗歌的母亲的话，是徒劳无功的。

Once I said to a poet, "We shall not know your worth until you die."

我曾对一个诗人说：“不到你死后我们不会知道你的评价。”
And he answered saying, "Yes, death is always the revealer. And if indeed you would know my worth it is that I have more in my heart than upon my tongue, and more in my desire than in my hand."

他回答说：“是的，死亡永远是个揭露者。如果你真想知道我的评价，那就是我心里的比舌上的多，我所愿望的比手里现有的多。”

If you sing of beauty though alone in the heart of the desert you will have an audience.
如果你歌颂美，即使你是在沙漠的中心，你也会有听众。