III
by Pablo Neruda
Tell me, is the rose naked or is that her only dress?
Why do trees conceal the splendor of their roots?
Who hears the regrets of the thieving automobile?
Is there anything in the world sadder than a train standing in the rain?
From The Book of Questions, William O’Daly, translator, Port Townsend, Washington, Copper Canyon Press, 2001, page 3. The last question (above) is my favourite Neruda passage, which also echoes with the Japanese notion of sabi.
|