Altogether Autumn

1、Altogether AutumnAltogether autumn金秋时节Its time to plant the bulbs百合. But I put it off 延后as long as possible because planting bulbs mean making space in borders边界which are still flowering开花. Pulling out all the annuals 一年生植物which nature本性has allowed to erupt 长牙in overpowering压倒purple, orange and pink

2、, a final cry of joy. That would almost be murder, and so I wait until the first night frost 受冻，结霜anaesthetizes麻醉，使入睡all the flowers with a cold, a creaky 老朽的crust 坚硬表皮that causes them to wither枯萎凋谢; a very gentle温和的，文雅的death. Now I wander through my garden indecisively优柔寡断的, trying to hold on to th

3、e last days of late summer.又到了种球茎的时节了，但我尽可能拖延栽种的时间，不想让其他开得正盛的花为它挪地方。要强行移除这些正在长芽的，五颜六色的植物，最终带来的不会是喜悦而是痛苦。所以我等到第一个霜降之夜，霜裹住它们坚硬腐朽的表皮，等它们慢慢凋谢，温柔的死去。我才徘徊于我的花园，试图抓住夏天的尾巴。The trees are plump变丰满with leafy多叶的splendor.光彩The birch桦树is softly温柔的柔和的rustling沙沙作响的gold, which is now fluttering颤抖的down like an unendi

4、ng stream of confetti糖果，五彩纸屑. Soon November will be approaching with its autumn storms and leaden铅灰色的clouds hanging above your head like soaking浸湿的wet潮湿的rags碎屑. Just let it stay like this, I think, gazing凝视a t the huge mysterious shadows the trees conjure想象up on the shining green meadows草地，牧场, the c

5、ows languidl y疲倦的，不活泼的flicking闪烁their tails. Everything breathes an air of stillness,静止the silence rent出租by the exuberant 生气勃勃的color of asters紫菀属植物, dahlias大丽花, sunflowers and roses.树木因叶子的光彩而显得丰满，桦树轻柔地沙沙作响，如今落叶像五彩的糖果纸般落下，十一月就要来了，那时秋天的暴风将会袭来，铅灰色的乌云如浸湿的碎屑般压在你头顶。我想，最好还是保持这样吧，可以凝视着树木的巨大而神秘的倒影，想像闪耀这光芒的绿色

6、牧场，奶牛们慵懒地摇着尾巴。你嗅到的一切都是静止的，而这静谧又会被紫菀，大丽花，向日葵和玫瑰们生气勃勃的颜色所打破。The mornings begin chilly寒冷的. The evenings give you shivers哆嗦，战栗and cold feet in bed. But in the middle of the day the sun breaks through, evaporating蒸发the mist 薄雾on the grass, butterflies and wasps黄蜂appear and cobwebs蜘蛛网glisten闪光against wind

7、ows like silver lace.花边The harvest of a whole years hard work is on the trees and bushes灌木; berries浆果类, beech山毛榉mast, chestnuts栗子, acorns橡子.早晨便是寒冷的，夜晚更会冻得你直打哆嗦，双脚冰冷。但是中午时分，当阳光照下来驱散笼罩在早地上的薄雾时，蝴蝶、黄蜂都会出来，窗前的蜘蛛网像给窗户镶上了一圈银边。一年劳动的成果都结在了树上，有灌木，浆果，山毛榉，栗子，橡子。Suddenly, I think of my youngest daughter, living

8、now in Amsterdam. Very soon she will call and ask “Have you planted the bulbs yet?” Then I will answer teasingly戏弄that actually Im waiting until she comes to help me. And then we will both be overcome by nostalgia,乡愁because once we always did that together. One entire sunny autumn afternoon, when sh

9、e was three and a half years old, she helped me with all enthusiasm热情and joyfulness欢喜of her age.突然，我想起了现在生活在阿姆斯特丹的小女儿。她很快就会打电话回来问我：“有没有种百合啦？”，而我会开玩笑的回答她，我要等她回来帮我种。然后我们都将被乡愁打败，因为曾今我们一直在一起种百合。当她三岁半的时候，她总是花上一整个晴朗的秋日下午帮我，带着她那个年纪特有的热情和欢喜。It was one of the last afternoons that I had her around, because he

10、r place in school has been already reserved预定. She wandered around so happily carefree无忧无虑with her little bucket 铲斗，水桶and spade铲子, covering the bulbs with earth and calling out “Night, night” or “Sleep night”, her little voice chattering颤动constantly时常，不断的on. She discovered “baby bulbs”, “kiddie小孩bul

11、bs”, and “mummy and daddy bulbs”, the latter snuggling 紧抱，依偎cozily舒适的together. While we were both working so industriously,勤勉的I watched my kid very deliberately.慎重的，谨慎的She was such a tiny thing, between an infant婴儿，幼儿and a toddler学步的小孩with such a round little tummy肚子.那是最后几个有她陪伴的下午，因为那时她的学校已经订好了。她无忧无

12、虑的拿着她的小铲子和铲斗，把百合埋在土里，高喊着“晚安，晚安”或者“睡吧，安”，她稚嫩的声音没有停过。她发明了“贝比百合”“小百合”和“妈咪爹地百合”后者紧紧的依偎在一起。我们都干得非常卖力，我仔细地打量着我的孩子，她是这么个小东西，有着一个介乎于婴儿和学步的小孩之间的圆圆的小肚子。Every autumn, throughout贯穿her childhood, we repeated the ritual惯例of planting the bulbs together. Every autumn I saw her changing, the toddler became a schoolg

13、irl, a straightforward简单的，坦率的realist现实主义者, full of drive内驱力. Never once dreamy空幻的, her hands in her pockets; no longer happily indulging in沉迷her fantasies. The schoolgirl developed long legs, her jaw-line下巴changed, she had her hair cut. It was autumn again that I thought “bye roses, bye butterflies,

14、 bye schoolgirl”. I listened to her stories while we painstakingly 煞费苦心的burrowed躲藏in the earth, planting the promise of spring.她童年的每一个秋天，我们延续着一起种百合的惯例。每个秋天我看着她长大，从一个姗姗学步的小孩，到一个学生，一个简单的现实主义者并且内心充满了动力。她不再空想，手插在口袋里，不再沉迷于她的白日梦。她的腿变长了，她的下巴变了，她的头发剪短了。又是一年秋天，我想我该说：“再见了，玫瑰，再见了，蝴蝶，再见了，学生”。我听着她的故事，那时我们煞费苦心地在地

15、上挖洞，种下春天的承诺。Suddenly, much quicker than I had expected, a tall teenager was standing by my side. She is taller than I. The ritual惯例，仪式became rather silent, and we no longer chatter from one subject to another. I thought about her room full of posters海报and knick-knacks小装饰品, how it had been full of tr

16、easures真品in bottles and boxes, white peddles叫卖, a copper brooch铜的胸针, colored drawings图画, the treasures of a child who still knew nothing of money, who wanted to be read to and who looked anxiously at a spider 蜘蛛at her room and asked, “Would he want to be my friend?”突然，比我想象的还要快，一个高高的少女已经站在了我身边，她已经比我高

17、了。我们一起种百合的仪式突然变得沉默了，我们不再从一个话题聊到另一个话题。我想到她的房间里贴满了海报和小装饰品。瓶子和盒子里装满了她的珍藏，有白色的小东西，一个铜的胸针，彩色的图画，一个对钱还一无所知的孩子的珍藏，一个希望被读懂的孩子，一个看见蜘蛛在自己房间里会紧张地问：“你想做我朋友吗”的孩子。Then came the autumn when I planted the bulbs alone, and I knew from then on it would always be that way. But every year, in autumn, she talks about it

18、, full of nostalgia乡愁for the security保证，安全of childhood, the seclusion隐退of a garden, the final moments of a season. How both of us would dearly深深地love to have a time machine. To go back. Just for a day.接下来的一个秋天，只有我一个人种百合了，而且我意识到从今往后都要我一个人种百合了。但是，每当秋天到来的时候，她谈起种百合的事，都充满了乡愁和对童年的怀念。怀念一个正在消失花园和一个季节的最后的美好时

19、光。我们都深深的希望有一个时光机器，能带我们会到过去，哪怕只有一天。眼下到了栽种球茎的好时光，但我却能拖就拖，因为要栽种球茎的话，就意味着要在开满鲜花的狭长花坛中腾出空地来，就意味着要把这些一年生植物连根拔起，而这些植物此时正接受着大自然的恩赐在尽情地绽放各种色彩紫色、橙色、粉红等，这是它们最后的欢声。连根拔掉它们无异于谋杀。所以我要等到第一个霜降之夜，那时，所有的花儿将被寒霜麻醉，那冰冷的、嘎吱作响的霜层会让它们慢慢凋零，会让它们温柔地逝去。此刻的我，忧心忡忡，徜徉在花园中，多想留住这夏末里的最后时日。周围的树木枝繁叶茂，茁壮成长。白桦树在婆娑地摇曳着一片片金色，这一片片金色飘然而下，犹如源

20、源不断的五彩纸屑。很快，十一月份就要来临，随之而来的便是秋雨，还有那犹如浸湿的抹布般悬挂在头顶上空的铅灰色的云。多么想让时光凝固在此刻，我思忖着，同时还注视着树木在绿得发光的草地上投下的巨大而诡谲的黑影，还有那倦怠地甩动着尾巴的牛儿。周围的一切一片静谧，唯有紫苑花、大丽菊、向日葵、玫瑰花那五彩斑斓的浓艳色彩在侵蚀四周的沉寂。清晨从一开始就冷飕飕的，到了夜晚，即使躺在被窝里也会打哆嗦，也会双脚冰凉。但在正午时分，阳光透过云层照射过来，将草地上的雾气蒸发。此时，蝴蝶和黄蜂都出来了，蜘蛛网衬着窗户闪着光，犹如银色的丝带。一颗颗树上、一簇簇灌木上，都挂满了辛劳整整一年后的收成：浆果、山毛榉实、板栗、橡

21、树果实等等。突然，我想起了此时正生活在阿姆斯特丹的小女儿。过一两天，她一定会打电话来问：“球茎种好了吗？”我会打趣地告诉她，我正等着她来帮忙呢。接着，我们俩就会沉浸在怀旧的思绪中，因为以前有一段时间，我们总是一起种球茎。在一个阳光灿烂的秋日下午（她那时刚过三岁半），她带着她那个年纪所具有的所有热情和欢乐帮我种下了球茎。当时她已报到准备上学了，她能伴我身边只剩最后几个下午了。那是其中一个下午的事儿。她提着小桶，拿着铲子，兴高采烈、无忧无虑地满园子里跑，一会儿给球茎掩土，一会儿喊着“夜晚来临了”或“睡个好觉吧”。那稚嫩的声音一遍又一遍地传来。她还会区分“球茎宝宝”、“球茎娃娃”和“球茎爸妈”。“球