Seeing a Face in a Shopping Center
This is the day every fowl comes out to choose its mate,
Neon signs flicker green and red,
And muzak systematically amplifies vociferous flows of quiet whispers.
Every preadolescent is titillated on the earlobe,
Chrisom faces in cradles are creamed with syntholube,
Along the shelves and over the counters eyeballs roll and pause.
Promoters panhandle the passers-by with professional passion,
Half-mature roses will be iced to last for another night.
"Roses are red, violets are blue,
If you don’t pay for love, what will you do?"
What will I do, what will I do to go through this modern purgatory?
Will they turn to one stone if they hold hands when crossing the bridge?
They are all the same, no matter in what attire,
From one shopping center to another, from display arcade to boutiques.
I am just another in the crowd, featureless, and no human voice can awake,
But suddenly from behind an array of mannequins a phantom blooms...
My eyes release their automatic shutters and take in a flower,
Oh, even at the gate of hell there grows a forget-me-not.
Feb. 14, 2003
在某商业中心看到一张似曾相识的脸
今天，禽与鸟都出来寻找伴侣
霓虹灯闪烁着红与绿
背景音乐随着系统流出，如静静的私语哗哗地流淌
挑逗着每个将要成年的耳垂
摇篮里天生就已发白的脸涂着合成润滑剂
眼球们在货架与柜台上停停滚滚
促销员纠缠着行人，职业的热情
半熟的玫瑰还可以用冰敷再保持一夜矜持
“玫瑰玫瑰红艳艳，紫罗兰呀披紫衣
你不花钱买爱情，指望何人遂你心”
谁可同行，谁可同行，在这奈何桥头的集市
如果双手相牵，走过那桥的瞬间俩人是否会变成一块石头
他们全都一样，尽管穿着各异
走出一座商业大厦，进入另一座，沿着展示廊和专卖店
我是人群中最无特征的一员，人类的声音无法将我唤醒
然而一排假人模特背后赫然浮现一朵幽灵的花
我的双眼立即按下快门，摄取一张似曾相识的脸
甚至在地狱的入口也生长着勿忘我
英文写于2003年情人节
2008年9月6日中文
Note:
The first line of the poem derives from Chaucer. The first recorded association of Valentine's Day (the day when Saint Valentine was honored) with romantic love comes from British poet Geoffrey Chaucer's Parliament of Fowls (1382): For this was on Saint Valentine's day/ When every bird comes there to choose its mate. However, it is obvious that Feburary is much too early for birds to mate in England.
按：第一行源自英国诗人乔叟（1343-1400）。乔叟在《众鸟议会》中第一次将圣瓦伦丁日赋予了两性之爱的意味。该诗这样写道：因为在圣瓦伦丁这一天/ 每只鸟儿都飞抵那里寻找伴侣。不过呢，英格兰的二月，显然太早了，还不可能是鸟儿们交配的季节。
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