"To Make Use of Water" by Safia Elhillo

My name is Safia Elhillo,

翻译人员: Han Zheng 校对人员: GeGe Tan

我的名字叫萨菲亚·艾海勒

and this poem is called "to make use of water."

这首诗叫做《水之用》。

dilute

稀释

i forget the arabic word for economy

我记不起"经济"的阿拉伯文

i forget the english word for عسل

我记不起"蜜蜂"(عسل阿拉伯文,下同)的英文

forget the arabic word for incense

记不起"芳香"的阿拉伯文

& english word for مسكين

和"差劲"的英文

arabic word for sandwich

"三明治"的阿拉伯文

english for صيدلية & مطعم & وله ‎

"餐厅"和"药店"的英文

/stupid girl, atlantic got your tongue/

/傻姑娘，大西洋令你缄口不言/

blur

模糊

back home we are plagued by a politeness so dense

在家中我们被客套重重包围

even the doctors cannot call things what they are

连医生也说不清这是什么时疫

my grandfather’s left eye

我祖父的左眼

swirled thick with smoke

冒出缕缕青烟

what my new mouth can call glaucoma

我的新嘴巴说那是青光眼

while the arabic still translates to

而阿拉伯语仍把它译成

the white water

白水

swim

漂浮

i want to go home

我想回家

dissolve

溶解

i want to go home

我想回家

drown

溺亡

half don’t even make it out or across

有一半的人甚至没能出海，或没能上岸

you get to be ungrateful

在蓝色美国护照的安全庇护之下

you get to be homesick

你大可忘恩负义 你大可思乡成疾

from safe inside your blue american passport

do you even understand what was lost to bring you here

你是否明白带你来到这片土地的代价 究竟是什么