理查德·布兰科：为奥巴马总统就职献诗

By Renée Montagne

诗人理查德·布兰科（Richard Blanco），受邀在美国总统奥巴马第二任期的就职典礼上朗诵他的诗歌《One Today》。1968年出生的理查德是历届美国总统就职典礼中获邀参加的最年轻的诗人嘉宾，同时也是首位获邀朗诵的拉美裔诗人。理查德深受奥巴马喜爱，奥巴马直夸他对诗歌和艺术领域的贡献，以及他对后世作家创作的影响。

When President John F. Kennedy was inaugurated in 1961， Robert Frost was asked to recite a poem. Robert Frost， 1）improvising there at the JFK inauguration. Frost was the first. Since then， only three other poets have taken part in inaugurations： Maya Angelou， Miller Williams， and Elizabeth Alexander. This years poet—Richard Blanco， a child of Cuban exiles. Hes the first 2）Hispanic poet to be so honored， and he joined us to talk about it. Welcome to the program. You werent born in America. Tell us about that journey.

Richard： Well， as my sort of 3）tongue-in-cheek bio says， I was made in Cuba， assembled in Spain and imported to the United States， which means my mother left—she was seven months pregnant with me when she left Cuba. And at that time， in 1968， since there were no diplomatic relations， everybody had to go through what they called “a third country.” So we ended up in Spain.

Forty-five days later， I was born， and a few weeks after that， we got in a plane and immigrated once more to New York City. So by the time I was about two or three months old， I had 4）figuratively and literally been in three countries， and could probably have claimed citizenship in any one of the three at that moment. And then eventually， when I was about three or four， we settled down in Miami.

And its kind of， you know， as I look back on my life， as we all do， you kind of think： is this some kind ironic or some kind of 5）foreshadowing， of course， of what my work as a poet would be obsessed with？ This whole idea of place and identity and whats home and whats not home， and...and which is in some ways such an American question that were—weve been asking since， you know， since 6）Whitman， trying to put that finger on America.

Reporter： Four years ago， the inauguration of the first black President was a moment that was filled with history. As someone who writes a lot about cultural identity in America， do you think that…that milestone has brought about any changes in our society four years later？

Richard： The immediate answer is， I think， yes. Specific changes—maybe again， in the way I look at the world as an artist—I dont know if its something in the air that I definitely feel is different. I do remember that historic moment， and I remember thinking to myself， it was one of the proudest moments I ever had as far as being proud of America in the sense of， like， I remember thinking to myself， “You did it， America.”

My life in America sort of feel a lot more open to possibility， and a lot more sort of dreaming a lot more of who I can be and what I can do. And 7）proof is in the pudding， you know， the sense of being here， an inaugural poet for this momentous occasion and the first Latino. I think that kind of mindset is contagious， I think its something that many people feel in the air.

1961年，约翰·F·肯尼迪总统宣誓就职的时候，罗伯特·弗罗斯特被邀请在其就职典礼上吟诵一首诗歌。罗伯特·弗罗斯特在肯尼迪的就职典礼上即兴吟诵诗歌。弗罗斯特是第一位受邀在就职典礼上吟诗的诗人。从那以后，只有三位其他的诗人获此殊荣：玛雅·安吉卢、米勒·威廉斯和伊丽莎白·亚历山大。今年的诗人—— 理查德·布兰科，是古巴流亡者的后代。他是第一位获此殊荣的拉美裔诗人，他将与我们一同探讨此经历。欢迎您来到我们的节目。您不是在美国出生的，分享一下您的生活历程吧。

理查德：嗯，就如我那半开玩笑的简历上所写的那样，我“制造”于古巴，在西班牙“组装”，然后被“进口”到了美国，这意味着我母亲离开了古巴，离开时她怀了我七个月。时值1968年，古巴和美国没有邦交，所有人都必须经过他们所谓的“第三国家”，所以我们到了西班牙。

45天后，我出生了。几个星期后，我们登上了一架飞机，又一次移民，到了纽约。所以，当我才两三个月大时，我实际上已经去过三个国家了，所以，当时我大概可以在这三个国家中的随便一个都能自称是其公民。然后，在我大概三四岁时，我们最终在迈阿密定居了下来。

这有点，你知道，像所有人一样，当我回首自己的人生时，就会想：这是不是有点讽刺，或者像是预兆，当然指的是，我作为一个痴迷于诗歌的人的预兆？地方和身份的观念，哪里是家以及哪里不是家，这似乎在某种程度上像是一个典型的美国问题——你知道，自从惠特曼以来，我们一直都在问自己这个问题，试图准确地找出美国这个问题的答案。

记者：四年前，美国第一位黑人总统的就职典礼是历史上一个里程碑式的时刻。你写了大量关于文化认同的作品，您觉得四年后，这座里程碑是否给我们的社会带来了变化呢？

理查德：直接的回答，我认为是肯定的。至于具体的变化—— 或许，以我作为一个艺术家看待世界的方式—— 我不确定是否是我确实感觉到具体的变化。我确实记得那个历史性的时刻，我记得，我心想，那是我以美国自豪的记忆中最值得骄傲的时刻之一。感觉就像，我记得我心里想，“你做到了，美国。”

我在美国的生活有了很多可能性，对自己能做什么，不能做什么怀揣很多梦想，可以做自己以及做自己能够做到的事情。实践就是最好的检验，你也知道，在总统就职典礼这一重大时刻，作为第一位拉美裔诗人出席，就是给你这种感觉。这种心情是具有感染力的，我认为这是许多人能感受到的。

Reporter： Thank you very much for joining us， and congratulations.

Richard ： Well， thank you， Renée. Its been a pleasure.

记者：非常感谢您和我们的分享，同时祝贺您。

理查德：谢谢，蕾妮。这是我的荣幸。

翻译：Cass

我曾问过一个喜欢诗歌的朋友：“对于一个诗人，你最想了解他的什么东西？”她说：“当然是他的诗啦，因为要真正了解一个诗人其实要深入探讨他的诗，从诗中寻找他真正的本性。”那想必大家看完诗人理查德·布兰科的人生经历采访还不过瘾吧，何不一起来听听他为奥巴马总统第二任期就职典礼上吟诵的诗歌呢……（由于空间有限，所以在这里只能选取诗歌的部分跟大家分享了～～）

One Today 同一天空下

One ground. Our ground， rooting us to every stalk

of corn， every head of wheat sown by sweat and hands，

hands gleaning coal or planting windmills

in deserts and hilltops that keep us warm， hands

digging trenches， routing pipes and cables， hands

as worn as my fathers cutting sugarcane

so my brother and I could have books and shoes.

One sky， toward which we sometimes lift our eyes

tired from work： some days guessing at the weather

of our lives， some days giving thanks for a love

that loves you back， sometimes praising a mother

who knew how to give， or forgiving a father

who couldnt give what you wanted.

We head home： through the gloss of rain or weight

of snow， or the plum blush of dusk， but always， always—home，

always under one sky， our sky. And always one moon

like a silent drum tapping on every rooftop

and every window， of one country—all of us—

facing the stars

hope—a new 1）constellation

waiting for us to map it，

waiting for us to name it—together.

一片土地。我们的土地，我们扎根于此，

于每根玉米秆上，以及用汗水和双手播种的每一个麦穗上，

双手捡拾煤炭，或在沙漠中以及山顶上安装

给我们提供温暖的风车，

双手挖掘壕沟，铺设管道和电缆，

有如父亲收割甘蔗磨破的双手，

只是为了让我和哥哥有书读、有鞋穿。

同一片天空，我们偶尔因工作劳累举头眺望：

有些日子里，我们凭借天气猜测着自己的命运，有些日子里，我们感谢所爱且爱你之人，

有些日子里，我们感恩着默默付出的母亲，

或原谅不能如你所愿的父亲。

我们踏上回家的旅途：穿过晶莹的雨水或厚重的积雪，

或绯红的黄昏，但是，总是，总是朝着家的方

向，

在同一片天空下，我们的天空下。同一轮明月，如寂静之鼓轻敲每家每户的屋顶

和窗户，在同一个国度——我们所有人——面朝星辰

冀望着发现新星群，

等待着为其绘制天体图

期待着我们共同为其命名。

翻译：Cass