the plane tree entertains the circus of doves 悬铃木款待鸽子的马戏团
stripped of spindly epicormic shoots,
the now-knuckle-tree jabs her skeletal arms
over the snapped stale breaths of pale, orange shavings
powdering the tree surgeon’s yellow truck.
Her psoriatic plane-bones arthrite in the grey sky.
Knotted; hunched naked like the great distorted central pole
of a marquee. Feather me, she says.
Don’t leave me open-necked up-holding this soft circus.
Perched in the flaking gnarl the little skull-caps are grey with it too.
They dot her fleshlessness with incredulous brows.
Tremble at the amplified sirens of daysound.
Blink bright as part of the canopy of constellations later on in the dark
By Helen Pletts 海伦·普莱茨
Illustrated by Romit Berger
Translated by Mǎ Yongbo 马永波
悬铃木款待鸽子的马戏团 the plane tree entertains the circus of doves马永波 译
剥去纺锤形休眠芽萌生的嫩枝，如今
关节累累的悬铃木戳出她嶙峋的手臂
在树医的黄色卡车上，淡橙色的刨花
散发出断裂的陈旧气息。
她那牛皮癣的骨头在灰色天空中因关节炎而作痛。
树结暴突；有如华盖中粗大扭曲的中柱，
赤裸躬身。给我披上羽毛，她说。
不要让我裸露着颈项撑起这柔软的马戏团。
小小的颅盖栖息在剥落的木瘤上，随之变灰。
它们用怀疑的眉毛点缀她的消瘦。
在白昼放大的汽笛声中颤抖。
又作为星座华盖的一部分在黑暗中闪烁
Romit Berger: “I am a graphic designer. I met my very dear friend, Helen Pletts, in Prague, several years ago. Helen’s inspiration has led my graphic design career into that magical realm which combines illustration and poetry, and our creative wings continue to connect our souls through time and distance.”
Mǎ Yongbo 马永波 has 7 poetry collections. Chinese scholar, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, focused on translating and teaching Anglo-American poetry and prose including Dickinson, Whitman, Stevens, Pound, Williams and Ashbery. His translation of Moby Dick, has sold over half a million copies. Collected Poems of Mǎ Yongbo (four volumes, Eastern Publishing Centre, 2024) comprising 1178 poems, celebrate 40 years of writing poetry.马永波出生于1964年，已出版了7本诗集。他是一位专注于翻译和教授英美诗歌和散文的中国学者，包括狄金森、惠特曼、史蒂文斯、庞德、威廉斯和阿什贝利的作品。他翻译的《白鲸》销量已超过50万册。他在南京理工大学任教。《马永波诗歌总集》（四卷本，东方出版中心，2024年）共收录1600首诗，庆祝他诗学探索40周年。
Helen Pletts: (www.helenpletts.com) Shortlisted 4 times for Bridport Poetry Prize 2018, 2019, 2022 and 2023, twice longlisted for The Rialto Nature & Place 2018 and 2022, longlisted for the Ginkgo Prize 2019, longlisted for The National Poetry Competition 2022. 2nd prize Plaza Prose Poetry 2022-23. Shortlisted Plaza Prose Poetry 2023-24. Working closely with Mǎ Yongbo since Feb 2024.