Cheng Ying: Memory

Cheng Ying: Memory


　　　Memory
　　　　　　　　　　by Cheng Ying tr. Fan Jinghua

Old women, do they recollect in the same way?
I’ve spent too much time remembering,
Not solely because life is boringly long—
I bring forth to my offspring what has been engraved on my body,
And what’s been written by the body, I deliver once and again
Till it frees itself through nerve-ends. At midday,
I pluck the berries of my hard work
To feed my diligent breasts;
As for the seeds of pain, I pick them out
And once every month I see them off to Lethe.


　　　记忆
　　　　　　　　　成婴

年老的女人，会这么回忆吗
我花费太多的时间，用以记忆
不尽然是生命冗长---
我将刻录到身体的，孕养给后代
身体所铭写的，一遍遍传送
直到逸出神经末梢。午间
我摘下辛勤劳获的浆果
喂养孜孜难倦的乳房
疼痛的籽实，拣择出来
每月一次，我亲自送往忘川


About the Author:
Cheng Ying, born in 1971 in Guangdong, is a researcher on architectural history and a documentary film director. She received her MA in architecture from Tsinghua University, focusing on the study of Confucian Temples and Schools. She has published a book of poetry Sitting on the Roof Beam. She now resides in Beijing.

成婴，71年生，广东人，获得硕士，主攻庙学，现居北京。建筑史研究者和纪录片导演，著有诗集《坐房梁》。