Not Waving, But Drowning

I read about a man getting drowned once
我曾讀到過一位男人,他溺過一次水
His friends thought he was waving to them
他的朋友們都以為他是在海裡向他們揮手打招呼
From the sea but really, he was drowning
但實際上,他正在被海水浸溺
And then I thought that, in a way, it is true of life too
就那麼一下我突然覺得,從某方面來說,生活也不過是這樣
That a lot of people pretend, out of bravery really
許多人都出於勇敢而去偽裝
That they are very jolly and ordinary sort of chaps
就好像是只是一群很快樂的,很普通的傢伙們
But really they do not feel at home at all in the world
但實際上他們在這個世界上一點也沒有家的歸屬感
Or able to make friends easily
或者一點也不善於交際
So then they joke a lot and laugh
所以他們開起玩笑,然後放聲大笑
And people think they're quite alright and jolly nice too
於是周圍的人們就會覺得他們過得很好很開心
But sometimes that brave pretense breaks down
但有些時候吧,勇敢的外表破碎掉
And then, like the poor man in this poem, they are lost
接著,就如這位可憐人在詩中寫道的一樣,他們迷失了
Not waving, but drowning
'並非在揮手,而是在沉溺'(出自Stevie Smith的詩歌)