A black-chinned hummingbird lands

一只黑颊蜂鸟在

on a metal wire and rests for five seconds;

一根钢丝上歇脚五秒钟；

for five seconds, a pianist lowers his head

五秒钟，一位钢琴师低下头

and rests his hands on the keys;

在琴键上歇息手指；

a man bathes where irrigation water

一个男人在灌溉水池中洗澡

forms a pool before it drains into the river;

在它汇入河流之前；

a mechanic untwists a plug, and engine oil

一位机械师在拧松一个塞子，机油

drains into a bucket; for five seconds,

流进一个桶中；在五秒钟里，

I smell peppermint through an open window,

我闻到窗外飘来的辣薄荷的气息

recall where a wild leaf grazed your skin;

想起野草割伤你肌肤的地方；

here touch comes before sight; holding you,

在这里触觉先于视觉来临；抱着你，

I recall, across a canal, the sounds of men

我记起，在运河的对面，在破晓时

laying cuttlefish on ice at first light;

男人们把墨鱼放在冰上的声音；

before first light, physical contact,

在破晓前，身体的接触，

our hearts beating, patter of female rain

我们的心跳，拍打屋顶的

on the roof; as the hummingbird

女性的细雨；当蜂鸟

whirrs out of sight, the gears of a clock

嗡鸣着出现在视野中，时钟的齿轮

mesh at varying speeds; we hear

以不同的速度啮合；我们听见

a series of ostinato notes and are not tied

重复出现的美妙旋律，身体

to our bodies’ weight on earth.

不再被重量束缚，飘离地球。