28 THE BAREFOOT BOY
|
二十八 赤脚男孩
|
John Gr eenleaf Whittier
|
约翰·格林里夫·惠蒂叶
|
Blessings on thee, little man, |
祝福你呵,小小年纪, |
Barefoot boy, with cheek of tan! |
赤脚男孩,晒黑的面皮! |
With thy turned-up pantaloons, |
穿一条马裤,卷边的裤脚, |
And thy merry whistled tunes; |
口哨轻吹,欢快的曲调; |
With thy red lip, redder still |
嘴唇红红,尝过了山中 |
Kissed by strawberries on the hill; |
生长的草莓,变得更红; |
With the sunshine on thy face, |
透过风度潇洒的破帽沿, |
Through thy torn brim's jaunty grace |
阳光照上了你的孩子脸; |
From my heart I give thee joy, ----- |
我衷心祝愿你满心欢快,—— |
I was once a barefoot boy ! |
我也曾一度是赤脚男孩! |
Prince thou art, ---- the grown-up man |
你是王子,——长大的成人 |
Only is republican. |
只是共和政体的公民。 |
Let the million-dollared ride |
让百万富翁纵横驰骋! |
Barefoot, trudging at his side, |
赤脚孩,你在他身旁行进, |
Thou hast more than he can buy |
通过你的眼睛和耳朵 |
In the reach of ear and eye, ---- |
你得到的远比他买到的多,—— |
Outward sunshine, inward joy: |
户外的阳光,内心的欢爱: |
Blessings on thee, barefoot boy ! |
祝福你呵,赤脚男孩! |
Oh for boyhood's painless play, |
无忧无虑呵,游戏的童年, |
Sleep that wakes in laughing day, |
一觉醒来是欢笑的白天, |
Health that mocks the doctor's rules, |
身体健,谁管医生的律条, |
Knowledge never learned of schools, |
知识多,不是从课堂里学到, |
Of the wild bee's morning chase, |
知道野蜂追逐在早上, |
Of the wild-flower's time and place, |
知道野花在哪里开放; |
Flight of fowl and habitude |
禽鸟怎样飞翔,森林里 |
Of the tenants of the wood; |
各种鸟类有什么脾气; |
How the tortoise bears his shell, |
乌龟怎样背负着甲壳, |
How the tortoise bears his shell, |
土拨鼠怎样把洞穴挖好, |
And the ground-mole sinks his well; |
鼹鼠又怎样挖通地道; |
How the robin feeds her young, |
知更鸟怎样喂养子女, |
How the oriole's nest is hung; |
黄鹏怎样修筑巢居; |
Where the whitest lilies blow, |
白色百合花在哪里开放, |
Where the freshest berries grow, |
新鲜的浆果在哪里生长, |
Where the ground-nut trails its vine, |
哪里伸展着野豆的藤蔓, |
Where the wood-grape's clusters shine; |
哪里闪亮着野生的葡萄串; |
Of the black wasp's cunning way, |
知道黑马蜂熟练的技巧, |
Mason of his walls of clay, |
能用粘土来构筑蜂巢, |
And the architectural plans |
灰色大黄蜂是营造专家, |
Of gray hornet artisans! |
有着一整套建筑规划! |
For, eschewing books and tasks, |
躲过了作业,避开了书本, |
Nature answers all he asks; |
大自然回答了所有的提问; |
Hand in hand with her he walks, |
他跟大自然手拉手行进, |
Face to face with her he talks, |
他跟大自然面对面谈论, |
Part and parcel of her joy,---- |
分享大自然的欢乐情怀,—— |
Blessings on the barefoot boy! |
多么幸福呵,赤脚男孩! |
Oh for boyhood's time of June, |
啊,童年时代的六月, |
Crowding years in one brief moon, |
一年的花季这时候集结, |
When all things I heard or saw, |
我听到、看到的一切都在 |
Me, their master, waited for. |
等着我(他们的主人)到来。 |
I was rich in flowers and trees, |
我拥有多少鲜花和树丛, |
Humming-birds and honey-bees; |
歌唱的小鸟,嗡嗡的蜜蜂; |
For my sport the squirrel played, |
多好玩啊,松鼠在游戏, |
Plied the snouted mole his spade; |
尖嘴的鼹鼠勤奋地挖地; |
For my taste the blackberry cone |
紫色的黑莓供我品尝, |
Purpled over hedge and stone; |
窜出了石崖,越过了篱墙; |
Laughed the brook for my delight |
欢笑的溪水使我喜悦, |
Through the day and through the night, |
日日夜夜流淌不歇; |
Whispering at the garden wall, |
在花园墙边悄悄低语, |
Talked with me from fall to fall; |
从落差到落差向我倾诉; |
Mine the sand-rimmed pickerel pond, |
我有镶沙的狗鱼池塘, |
Mine the walnut slopes beyond, |
我有胡桃树在那边斜坡上, |
Mine, on bending orchard trees, |
我有仙乡果园的苹果 |
Apples of Hesperides! |
在果树弯弯的枝上挂着! |
Still as my horizon grew, |
我的眼界越来越开阔, |
Larger grew my riches too; |
我的财富也越来越多; |
All the world I saw or knew |
我见到、了解的整个世界 |
Seemed a complex Chinese toy, |
像中国玩具组合成一台 |
Fashioned for a barefoot boy! |
造出来给一个赤脚男孩! |
Oh for festal dainties spread, |
哦,节日里有美味佳肴, |
Like my bowl of milk and bread; |
像我的碗里有牛奶面包, |
Pewter spoon and bowl of wood, |
白镴的汤匙,木头的碗, |
On the door-stone, gray and rude ! |
在门前青灰的铺石上用餐! |
O' er me, like a regal tent, |
在我的上空,像豪华锦帐, |
Cloudy-ribbed, the sunset bent, |
霞光四射,落日辉煌, |
Purple-curtained, fringed with gold, |
紫幕垂挂,镶着金边, |
Looped in many a wind-swung fold; |
风卷云霓,百褶连环; |
While for music came the play |
这时候来了阵阵乐声, |
Of the pied frogs' orchestra; |
是青蛙乐队开始奏鸣; |
And, to light the noisy choir, |
为了照亮喧闹的歌班, |
Lit the fly his lamp of fire. |
荧火虫点起了灯光闪闪。 |
I was monarch: pomp and joy |
我是君王:欢乐和气派 |
Waited on the barefoot boy ! |
全都侍奉着赤脚男孩! |
Cheerily, then, my little man, |
那么,孩子,趁着童年, |
Live and laugh, as boyhood can ! |
愉快地生活,常开笑颜! |
Though the flinty slopes be hard, |
虽然石头坡嶙峋难爬, |
Stubble-speared the new-mown sward., |
新割的草地布满尖茬, |
Every morn shall lead thee through |
可每个早晨会领你去经历 |
Fresh baptisms of the dew; |
滴滴露水的新鲜洗礼; |
Every evening from thy feet |
每个傍晚有凉风吹拂, |
Shall the cool wind kiss the heat: |
从你的脚边送走炎热: |
All too soon these feet must hide |
一眨眼功夫你这双赤脚 |
In the prison cells of pride, |
将藏进体面的鞋子监牢, |
Lose the freedom of the sod, |
不能在草地上自由来去, |
Like a colt's for work be shod, |
像钉上铁蹄干活的马驹, |
Made to tread the mills of toil, |
要在磨坊里踏步劳动, |
Up and down in ceaseless moil: |
转来转去不停地做工: |
Happy if their track be found |
但愿这一双脚丫的踪迹 |
Never on forbidden ground; |
不会印上禁区的土地; |
Happy if they sink not in |
但愿这双脚不会陷进 |
Quick and treacherous sands of sin. |
蒙人的流沙,罪恶的陷阱。 |
Ah ! that thou couldst know thy joy, |
呵,要珍惜你幸福还在, |
Ere it passes, barefoot boy! |
可幸福难再呵,赤脚男孩! |
|
屠 岸译 |