D · A · 鮑威爾〈殘忍，殘忍的夏天〉2022.6.9

D · A · 鮑威爾〈殘忍，殘忍的夏天〉　　　2022.6.9，試譯

若是要你擇取，你會如何，其一是擁有燦亮花序——像明亮郵票的野芥菜
其二是，一種植物，草原煙——看上去，色彩匱乏的流蘇樹，舞動著褻衣

要麼是低處的微風鑽進微微綻裂的窗戶，要麼是只在居家
飛舞的果蠅、百葉窗的遮覆，讓我們免受了——日光的燃燒

有一天，你命令我側躺在你身旁，但你隨即，驅散我。　我們做完了
以士兵的忠誠、以教堂禮拜的摯愛，對於什麼是永遠我們深懷著惡意

描繪向下沉落的地形，歸還一座——四周環繞著陸地的海，你奇異的景觀
你的暗喻，你統治的範圍，你細枝繁茂的領土，迅即捲入，隱沒在漩渦下

波峰與波峰，浪潮和雲朵，雷鳴爆破，無盡的漣漪——迸裂
我們的總和是這樣的：　短暫的噴嚏草，短暫的鮮黃火焰

熄滅。你的離去，微量如此，地表砰的一聲，
一滴水珠——束縛了塵埃，少許土壤，一田地的土壤

「窪地逐漸——被雨水淹沒，漸漸也被遺忘了」這是你必須承受的
全心經驗過專屬的心緒象徵（與你類同處境之人與你共享這組象徵）：

起初是第一次，我們匯聚的火光——草旬地上盛開花朵的光暈
但是，依賴意象來複印光線，必然失敗，徹底失敗一如我們

我們這種生物並不優雅，是彼此的褻衣，抹消框線，纏繞一張又一張的床
嚴禁告訴我驟雨。　嚴禁告訴我熱氣，也太該死了吧，我們之間過載的熱氣



D. A. Powell〈cruel, cruel summer〉

either the postagestamp-bright inflorescence of wild mustard
or the drab tassel of prairie smoke, waving its dirty garments

either the low breeze through the cracked window
or houseflies and drawn blinds to spare us the calid sun

one day commands the next to lie down, to scatter: 　we're done
with allegiance, devotion, the malicious idea of what's eternal

picture the terrain sunk, return of the inland sea, your spectacle
your metaphor, the scope of this twiggy dominion pulled under

crest and crest, wave and cloud, the thunder blast and burst of swells
this is the sum of us: 　brief sneezeweed, brief yellow blaze put out

so little, your departure, one plunk upon the earth's surface,
one drop to bind the dust, a little mud, a field of mud

the swale gradually submerged, gradually forgotten
and that is all that is to be borne of your empirical trope:

first, a congregated light, the brilliance of a meadowland in bloom
and then the image must fail, as we must fail, as we

graceless creatures that we are, unmake and befoul our beds
don't tell me deluge. 　don't tell me heat, too damned much heat

2008