荷塘月色

　　Moonlight over the Lotus Pond

　　朱自清

　　Zhu Ziqing

　　這幾天心里頗不寧睜。今晚在院子里坐著乘涼，忽然想起日日走過的荷塘，在這滿月的光里，總該另有一番樣子吧。月亮漸漸地升高了，墻外馬路上孩子們的歡笑，已經聽不見了；妻在屋里拍著閏兒，迷迷糊糊地哼著眠歌。我悄悄地披了大衫，帶上門出去。

　　It has been rather disquieting these days. Tonight, when I was sitting in the yard enjoying the cool, it occurred to me that the Lotus Pond, which I pass by every day, must assume quite a different look in such moonlit night. A full moon was rising high in the sky; the laughter of children playing outside had died away; in the morn, my wife was patting the son, Run-er, sleepily humming a cradle song. Shrugging on an overcoat, quietly, 1 made my way out, closing the door behind me.

　　沿著荷塘.是一條曲折的小煤屑路。這是一條幽僻的路；白天也少人走，夜晚更加寂寞。荷塘四面，長著許多樹，翁翁郁郁的。路的一旁，是些楊柳，和一些不知道名字的樹。沒有月光的晚上，這路上陰森森的，有些怕人。今晚卻很好，雖然月光也還是淡淡的。

　　Alongside the Lotus Pond nuns a small cinder footpath. It is peaceful and secluded here, a place not frequented by pedestrians even in the daytime; now at night, it looks mare solitary, in a lush, shady ambience of trees all around the pond. On the side where the path is, there are willows, interlaced with some others whose names I do not know. The foliage, which, in a moonless night, would loom somewhat frighteningly dark, looks very nice tonight, although the moonlight is not more than a thin, grayish veil.

　　路上只我一個人，背著手踱著。這一片天地好像是我的；我也像超出了平常的自己，到了另一世界里。我愛熱鬧，也愛冷靜；愛群居，也愛獨處。像今晚上，一個人在這蒼茫的月下，什么都可以想，什么都可以不想，便覺是個自由的人。白天里一定要做的事，一定要說的話，現在都可不理。這是獨處的妙處；我且受用這無邊的荷香月色好了。