The melody is vanishing into where sunlight meets the shade,

“空山鸟语”在绿荫与阳光的边界消歇

The erhu player wipes the strings, encases the instrument,

拉二胡的人抹弦，收琴，坐下闲话

and sit down to chat. A couple quietly pick off the shell of lima beans.

一对夫妻安静地捡掉青豆苗的黑豆壳

A young man is lying on the bench with his eyes wide-opened to the sky.

长木凳上一个年轻男子睁着眼躺着

The gnomon of the sundial moves from the underside of the plate to the North,

日冕的指针从下面移向北方

Sunlight pulled from the heaven's eyes to the feet of the earth, lucent and transpiring.

光从天顶拉到地脚，透亮

Cicadas fold their songs, their wings and fall down.

蝉唱完它的歌，拢翅坠落树下

Lichen under the bushes greened by last night's rain.

一场雨绿了树丛下的地衣

An old woman dragging her slippers tita tita walks inside the veined corridor,

一个老妇人踢踏踢踏走进长廊

A lion-like face of an Alzheimer outfaces these people’s melancholy.

狮子般的脸逼视这些人的忧郁

No one dares to ward off the stare, no one utters a word.

无人敢躲开目光，无人说话

A few sparrows bump into the sunlight--

几只麻雀在阳光下跳跃

Not knowing it is the time of autumn,

不知道秋天了

Neither the life nor the death of themselves or others.

也不知自己或谁的生死

A little girl sings and claps her hands:

一个小女孩拍手唱起来：

“You clap one, I clap two, and games is what a girl should do.”

你拍一，我拍一，一个小孩做游戏……