在我母親的兩幅肖像前

Emile Nelligan

我深愛著多年前的這幅肖像里

I love the beautiful young girl of this

那年輕貌美的姑娘，她是我的母親

portrait,my mother,painted years ago

那時，她前額皎白，她那閃耀著七彩光芒的眼睛

when her forehead was White, and there was no

沒有一絲黯然。但她的另一幅肖像則顯出

shadow in the dazzling Venetian glass

那一道道深深的紋路爬過她白晳

of her gaze．But this other likeness shows

如大理石的前額。她年少時那首玫瑰詩篇

the deep trenches across her foreheads white

曾被她的婚姻所吟唱，而今已遠去。我的悲傷

marble. The rose poem of her youth that

就在于：我對比兩幅肖像，一幅

her marriage sang is far behind. Here is

神情愉悅，另一幅憂心

my sadness: I compare these portraits, one

忡忡：一幅宛如旭日初升———另一幅則如夜里重重黑暗

of a joy-radiant brow,the other careheavy: sunrise--and

來襲。然而我的看法多么奇怪，

the thick coming on of night. And yet how strange my ways appear,

當我看著那失去光澤的雙唇時，我的心

for when I look at these faded lips my heart

在微笑，但面對那含笑如花的少女時，我卻潸然淚下。

smiles, but at the smiling girl my tears start.