Gathering Leaves
扫落叶

Spades take up leaves
这铲子铲树叶
No better than spoons,
不比汤勺顺手。
And bags full of leaves
一袋袋鼓鼓的，
Are light as balloons.
轻得像是气球。

I make a great noise
嘁嘁嚓嚓作响
Of rustling all day
闹腾了一整天，
Like rabbit and deer
好比兔子乱窜，
Running away.
野鹿奔在山间。

But the mountains I raise
可堆起的山头
Elude my embrace,
自己却抱不住。
Flowing over my arms
树叶漫过手臂，
And into my face.
直往我脸上杵。

I may load and unload
我能装了又卸，
Again and again
来回一遍一遍，
Till I fill the whole shed,
把这整间堆满。
And what have I then?
会得到些什么？

Next to nothing for weight,
份量轻到极点。
And since they grew duller
颜色嘛，又因为
From contact with earth,
贴泥地上太久，
Next to nothing for color.
一点都不鲜艳。

Next to nothing for use.
几乎没啥用处。
But a crop is a crop,
可毕竟是庄稼，
And who’s to say where
谁又能说收获
The harvest shall stop?
该在哪里停住？