美麗的邂逅

2006 年，我聯繫了安大略詩歌協會的創始人 Bunny Iskov，請她為我們新創辦的雜志《北美楓》（中英雙語刊物）推薦幾位優秀詩人。最先收到的詩作之一是凱瑟琳·L·戈登的《仲夏夜》。儘管從未謀面，凱瑟琳卻對我們無比信任與熱情。多年來，我們的詩歌經常出現在相同的選集中，揭示了我們對自然與人類平衡的共同關註和相似的價值觀。

2024年6月，當我在中國巡回書展時，接到一個提議，問我是否願意出版凱瑟琳·L·戈登和詹姆斯·迪爾的詩歌合集。我立刻對此産生了濃厚興趣，因為他們兩位都是加拿大出色的詩人。回到加拿大後，我欣然與他們合作，編輯出版《警覺》。在這個過程中，凱瑟琳的溫暖、她無窮的活力，以及她詩歌中彌漫的神秘感，給我留下了深刻的印象。我渴望與她見面。有趣的是，一首詩悄然浮現，仿佛在召喚我們的邂逅：

給凱瑟琳·L·戈登

我將在秋天與你相會，

在你精心照料的花園裏，

懷着敬畏聽你宇宙合唱。

我的夏日口袋裝滿你珍愛的勿忘我，

每一片是一張快閃的新卡，

拋出戰爭與和平的質疑，

每一朵是一首憂傷的老歌，

哀悼這支離破碎的地球。

每天散步時，我思考你腦海中的繆斯女神，

並試圖去理解你酸甜苦辣參半的警覺。

我想象將叩響的門似曾相識，
因為我們的祖先曾跋涉同樣旅程，

漫長不孤單——

看大雁飛來又歸去

夢見星辰升起落下

我將在秋天與你相會，

在初霜和夜幕降臨之前。

當樹葉轉紅，展翅飛嚮大地，

我們將捕捉它們內在的光和火焰，

讓宇宙合唱再次回響。

註：斜體詩句取自凱瑟琳詩歌

我把這首詩寄給了凱瑟琳；很快便收到了她真摯的感謝信，熱情邀請我隨時前去拜訪。

於是在九月的一個美好早晨，我去拜訪了凱瑟琳，並把印製精美的《警覺》帶上。

多年來通過郵件的往來，終於與凱瑟琳見面的那一刻，宛如一場美麗的邂逅。她熱情地為我們展示她的房子和花園，我們愉快地拍照留念，交換書籍，戴着各自的別緻禮帽。凱瑟琳嚮我們講述了她傢中每一件珍藏背後的故事，那一刻，我仿佛觸碰到了她詩歌中神秘感的源泉。

與凱瑟琳的相遇，讓我深感“生命的美麗在於抓住當下，盡情生活”。她的詩歌充滿了這種活力與能量。當翻譯50首她自選的跨越時空的詩歌時，我總是全身心地投入其中，力求將她的文字轉化為生動的中文表達。我由衷感謝我們的相遇，既在現實生活中，也在語言的交流中。現在，我們很高興將我們的邂逅延續到這本新書中：《子夜過後》，雖然我們的作品可能無法改變世界，但它們提出了關於人類如何對待地球、如何相互對待的重要問題。我也很榮幸能夠將這些帶入華語世界。

有些事我們永遠不能忘記，有些信息我們必須傳遞下去。我們會繼續書寫、創作、並且生活……

附我翻譯的凱瑟琳的《勿忘我》

風光無限的一片荒野

彌漫着花園那些藍色和淡紫

纖柔細膩的色彩，

就像一面面簡短的旗幟

見證一切在春光明媚中

生長和發光之物的永恆之愛。

在炮彈之下，加沙熔化——

無處逃離；

鮮花會在孩童逝去之地成活？

戰爭會從我們的景觀中消失？

自然的和諧

取代我們殘酷的畜牧？

    星子安娜

加拿大安省密西沙加 

   2024年九月六日

Beautiful Encounters

In 2006, I reached out toBunny Iskov, the founder of Ontario Poetry Society, asking her to recommend some outstandingpoets for our newly foundedmagazine,The North American Maple (a bilingual publication in Chinese and English). Among the first poems I received wasKatherine L. Gordon’s beautifulauthentic piece: Midsummer Eve. Although we had never met, Katherine offered us her work withgreat trust and enthusiasm. Over the years, our poems often appeared in the same anthologies, revealing our shared values and mutual concern for the balance between nature and humanity.

         In June 2024, while I was on a book tour in China, I was asked if Sureway Press could publish a collection of poems by Katherine L. Gordon and James Deahl. I was immediately drawn to the idea, as both poets are fine poets in Canada. Upon returning to Canada, I eagerly collaborated with them on their profound book Awareness. Through this process, I was deeply impressed by Katherine’s warmth, her boundless energy, and the mysticism that permeates her poetry. I longed to meet her in person. Soon, a poem came to me, as if calling me to visit her:

For Katherine L. Gordon

I shall come to meet you in autumn，

in the garden you have tended with care,
listening to your Cosmic Chorus with awe.

My summer pockets are full of 
        your forget-me-nots—

each petal is a new flashcard

       questioning war and peace,

each flower is an old sad song,

       mourning this fractured Earth.

On my daily walks, I ponder

      the muse in your mind

and wonder how your awareness

       turns bittersweet.

I imagine the door I will knock at

       is what I knew，

for our ancestors have shared

       the same journey——

seeing wild geese come and go,

dreaming of stars shooting and falling.

I will come to meet you in autumn,

before the first frost and nightfall.

When leaves turn red and wing to earth,

we will catch their inner light and flame

to let the Cosmic Chorus rise once more.

I sent the poem to Katherine; I immediately received a gracious thank-you note from her, welcoming me to visit her any time.

Soon, the beautiful book: Awareness was produced and published.  I decided to visit Katherine and bring her copies of the book.

After years of exchanging emails, meeting Katherine in person was a beautiful encounter. She welcomed us with a warm tour of her house and garden, where we took joyful photos together, exchanged books, and donned fancy hats! Katherine shared with us the love stories behind each treasure in her home, and in that moment, I felt I had found the source of her mysticism.

Katherine reminds me that “the beauty of life is to seize the moment, to live fully.” Her poetry radiates this zest and energy. When translating the 50 poems she selected, which span across timeand space, I strive to immerse myself in them, transforming her words into vibrant expressions in Chinese. I am grateful for our encounters, both in person and through languages. Now we are happy to extend our encounters into this new book: After Midnight，while our work may not change the world, it raises important questions about how humans should treat the earth and one another. I am honored to bring these questions into the Chinese world as well.

There are things we must never forget. There are messages we must pass on. We will continue writing, creating and living…

Forget-Me-Nots

By Katherine L. Gordon

A wild field of surging glory

fills the garden with delicate hues

of blue and mauve,

banners of brief testament to enduring love

of all that breathes and glows in spring incandescence.

Gaza melts beneath bombs—

no place to flee;

will fields of flowers grow where children die?

Will war be banished from our landscapes,

the harmony of nature

replace our brutal husbandry?

作者簡介：

　　星子安娜 /Anna Yin加拿大密西沙加市首屆桂冠詩人(2015-2017)，著四本英文詩集，一本《愛的燈塔雙語詩集》和《鏡子與窗戶-東西詩翻譯集》。安娜詩歌獲北美多個英文詩歌奬，被加拿大國傢電臺，詩歌月和全國公交巡展以及學院選用。安娜也多次榮任中英文詩評委，在國際詩歌節表演和講授詩歌。