Image: Tong Xiaofeng 仝晓锋, long time best friend of Ma Yongbo 马永波, celebrating reunion, 14th May 2025
two friends form an arch—for Yongbo and Xiaofeng
两个朋友构成一道拱门——致永波与晓锋
their slight leaning together uplifting thought;
so close that they both hear it.
Although their soft mouths are still
they are silently communing,
their shoulders are ringed with years,
slow quiet growth echoing.
For a moment, we can put them as boys,
then we can grow them into youths;
recreating them endlessly in the camera’s shutter breath
May 14th 2025
Response Poetry By Helen Pletts 海伦·普莱茨
Response Poetry Translated by Ma Yongbo 马永波
两个朋友构成一道拱门——致永波与晓锋
two friends form an arch for Yongbo and Xiaofeng
他们微微相依，让思想扬起；
靠得如此之近，彼此都能听见。
尽管柔软的嘴唇静止不动，
他们却在无声地交流，
岁月环绕着他们的肩膀，
生长出缓慢而安静的回响。
此刻，我们可将他们视作男孩，
转眼又能让他们长成青年；
在相机快门的呼吸中，
无数次地重塑他们的模样……
2025年5月14日
Image: Tong Xiaofeng 仝晓锋 and Ma Yongbo 马永波 , Xi’an, 13th May 2025
The Last Few Days of Spring
暮春的最后几天
for Tong Xiaofeng’s 53rd birthday
The last few days of spring
will be bright and sunny days
so you can wash clothes wearing your shrinking sweater
there will be dark and gloomy hours
so it’s cooler inside than out of the room
there will be rain at dusk to chill the night
an ant army will swarm from seams of cement
persimmons knot into buttons in light green
expanding bit by bit loaded with sweet explosive cherries
that will melt and drip onto the top of the car
green craters appear over the battleground of orychophragmus
everything is changing including even the reflection on the water
there will be time to chew the desolation in old books
throw into the valley rotten and blackened firewood
time for an elegant turtledove
to perch on the wet path in the woods
time for you to pick another path slow down
and gaze at each other over the flowers rising taller and taller
there will still be someone standing quietly
at the edge of the land staring into the abyss
there will still be storms gathering on a distant planet coming
there will still be unknown moments to have firm belief in you
you will still follow the urge of a partridge sleepless all night long
fall in love with things disappearing again and again
24 March 2016
Response Poetry By Ma Yongbo 马永波
Response Poetry Translated By Ma Yongbo 马永波
暮春的最后几天
The Last Few Days of Spring
为老友仝晓锋大师53岁生日而作）
暮春的最后几天
还会有几个晴朗的日子
让你穿着缩水的毛衣，用手洗衣服
还会有一些阴郁的时辰
让屋子里比外面凉爽
还会有暮雨增加入夜的寒凉
水泥缝里还会涌出蚂蚁的军团
柿子打结成淡绿色的钮扣
逐渐膨胀，装填甜蜜的炸药
樱桃还会融化，滴落在车顶
绿色弹坑还会遍布二月兰的阵地
一切都在变，甚至水中的倒影
还来得及细嗅旧书的荒凉
把腐烂发黑的柴火抛入深谷
还来得及让一只优雅的斑鸠
斜落在积水的林间小径
让你选择另一条路，放慢脚步
隔着越来越高的花丛互相打量
在大地的边缘，还会有人悄然独立
向深渊眺望，还会有风暴
从遥远的行星上吹来
还会有无名的时刻对你满怀信任
你还会听从鹧鸪的催促，彻夜不眠
反复爱上那些正在消逝的事物
2016.4.24
Tong Xiaofeng 仝晓锋 comments on Ma Yongbo’s 马永波 translation of Helen’s poems：
This selection of poems by Helen Pletts, translated by Yongbo, represents a tendency in contemporary Western poetry: the fusion of words and things, a dialogue between humans and existence. The language arrives as quietly and lightly as a bird, allowing us to see things growing in the most unlikely places! (Tong Xiaofeng, poet, director, screenwriter)
永波翻译的这组海伦·普莱茨诗选，代表着西方当代诗歌的一种趋向：词与物融合，人与存在对话，语言轻盈若鸟悄然而至，令我们看到事物在最不可能找到的地方生长！（仝晓锋，诗人，导演，编剧）
Tong Xiaofeng 仝晓锋, born in 1963 in Xi’an, is a poet and film director. He began publishing his works in 1982 and released a bilingual poetry collection titled “Sixty-Six Poems” (Hong Kong High-grace Publishing House, 2010). Tong is the chief editor of the “Ithaca Film Translation Series,” which includes “The World of Nolan’s Films” and “The World of Quentin’s Films” (Commercial Press, 2023). He independently directed the films “Kids in the Wind” (awarded the “Lily Award” for Best Children’s Film by the National Radio and Television Administration in 2005) and “Chang’an Treasure Map” (2017). He is the compiler of Ma Yongbo’s four-volume poetry collection (Shanghai Oriental Publishing Centre, 2024 edition)
仝晓锋，1963年生于西安，诗人，电影导演，1982年起开始发表作品，出版中英双语诗集《诗六十六首》（香港高格出版社，2010）。主编“伊萨卡电影译丛”（《诺兰的电影世界》《昆丁的电影世界》等，商务印书馆，2023）。独立编导拍摄电影《童年游戏》（2005年获国家广电部数字电影“百合奖”最佳儿童片）和《长安藏宝图》（2017年）。他是马永波四卷本《诗歌总集》的编者（上海东方出版中心，2024年版）
Image: Tong Xiaofeng 仝晓锋
Tong Xiaofeng film lecture video:
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/9VCUAPV21M4
Image : film poster for Kids in the Wind , Directed by Tong Xiaofeng 仝晓锋
Baidu entries about this movie：
https://baike.baidu.com/item/童年游戏/17568597
Image : film poster for Changan Treasure Map (2017), Directed by Tong Xiaofeng 仝晓锋
Three of Tong Xiaofeng’s 仝晓锋 poems, translated by Ma Yongbo 马永波, were originally published by Nasir Aijaz in the Sindh Courier
https://sindhcourier.com/a-little-bird-on-the-guitar/
See Ma Yongbo Poetry Road Trip Volume 10 for Nasir Aijaz’s Bio https://internationaltimes.it/ma-yongbo-poetry-road-trip-summer-tour-2025-volume-10/
A Little Bird on the Guitar in the Past
On every guitar perches a bird
blue
it does not chirp
unless music plays
then you can see its shining beak and
feathers
I once had such a guitar
and such a bird
it rested on my hand all day
whenever I stroked the strings
it made the guitar’s soundboard
overflow with the sea
In those days
I was at sea every day
those were good times
back then
I was still young
a girl has just been
on my mind.
By Tong Xiaofeng 仝晓锋
Translated by Ma Yongbo 马永波
昔日吉他上的一只小鸟
每把吉他上都停着一只小鸟
蓝色的
它不叫
除非有音乐的时候
你才可以看见它发亮的嘴 和
羽毛
过去我也有这样一把吉他
也有
这样一只鸟
它整天落在我的手上
只要我抚动琴弦
它就让琴板
溢出海水
那时
我天天都在海上
那时真好呵
那时
我还小
心里刚刚
掂着个女孩
Three Horses
For a long time now
whenever the wind rises
three horses
will just stand outside the door
The sky is a wooden board
nails are the stars
whenever they stop
the road will glow
No one knows
how long they travelled
to reach today
to murmur softly
offering silence and night
Three horses
stand upright in the wind
motionless
in their sad eyes
there is nothing but seawater
By Tong Xiaofeng 仝晓锋
Translated by Ma Yongbo 马永波
三匹马
已经很久了
起风的时候
三匹马
就立在门外
天空是木板
铁钉是星星
只要停下来
道路就会发亮
没有谁能知道
走了多少路
它们才抵达今天
才喃喃
献出寂静和夜色
三匹马
直立在风中
一动不动
他们悲伤的眼里
尽是海水
Amber
A small lamp, his flame always burning within
for many years, he still listens inside
tranquility lies beneath many leaves
he often hears the patter of rain
hears birds gently tapping the sky
in his dreams, the sea dwells on spring trees
the trees are also round, and fish swim
tiny lights leak in and float out
deep in the flame it is very quiet.
In ancient times, he was young
his beautiful wife slept in a flower for many years.
The flower has fallen countless times
the flower has also turned into a leaf, now
even the moonlight has changed, yet he remains young
still listening to ancient wind and snow.
A drop of water can also hold the red sun
darkness has never fallen
he is warm
his flame keeps shining inside
Oh, this small lamp
for many years
By Tong Xiaofeng 仝晓锋
Translated by Ma Yongbo 马永波
琥珀
一盏灯，小小的，火光一直在里面亮着
很多年了，它仍在里面聆听，
宁静在许多叶子下面
它常听见点点的雨声
听见鸟轻轻叩击天空
在它的梦里，海水都住在春天的树上
树也圆圆的，鱼儿在游动
细小的光漏进来又飘出去
火光深处很静，古代的时候它就很年轻
它有过美丽的妻子
妻子在一朵花里睡着很多年了
花不知落过多少次了
花也变成了叶子，如今
月色也都变了，它仍很年轻，
仍在聆听古时的风雪
一滴水也会系住红红的太阳，
始终没有黑暗降临
它很温暖
火光一直在里面亮着，
小小的一盏灯呀
很多年了
Image: Tong Xiaofeng 仝晓锋
Image: Tong Xiaofeng 仝晓锋 and Ma Yongbo 马永波, Xi’an, 16th May 2025
Image: Ma Yongbo 马永波giving a present of a copy of his poetry book the ‘Collected Poems of Ma Yongbo’ (four volumes, Eastern Publishing Centre, 2024) comprising 1178 poems, celebrate 40 years of writing poetry, compiled by Tong Xiaofeng 仝晓锋 , to Tong Xiaofeng’s 仝晓锋 doctor, 17th May 2025
Tong Xiaofeng 仝晓锋 and Ma Yongbo 马永波 plan to collaborate on a 90-minute poetry film, presenting the artistic conception of Ma Yongbo’s 马永波 poetry and his life experience with beautiful images. Tong Xiaofeng 仝晓锋 will be the director and Ma Yongbo 马永波 will be the screenwriter.
Helen Pletts 海伦·普莱茨 and Ma Yongbo 马永波
Helen Pletts 海伦·普莱茨 is a British poet based in Cambridge, whose work has been translated into Chinese, Bangla, Greek, Vietnamese, Serbian, Korean, Croatian, Arabic and Italian. She is the English co-translator of Chinese poet Ma Yongbo.
Helen’s poetry has garnered significant recognition, including five shortlistings for the Bridport Poetry Prize (2018, 2019, 2022, 2023, 2024), two longlistings for The Rialto Nature & Place Prize (2018, 2022), a longlisting for the Ginkgo Prize (2019), a longlisting for the National Poetry Competition (2022), 2nd Prize in the Plaza Prose Poetry Competition (2022-23), and a shortlisting for the Plaza Prose Poetry Competition (2023-24).
Her three collections include the illustrated ‘your eye protects the soft-toed snow drop’, with Romit Berger (2022, ISBN 978-9-657-68177-0, Gama Poetry) and two early collections ‘Bottle bank’ (2008 ISBN 978-1-84923-119-0), and ‘For the chiding dove’ (2009, ISBN 978-1-84923-485-6) published by YWO/Legend Press with Arts Council support. Her prizewinning prose poetry features in The Plaza Prizes anthologies, and her eco-poetry appears in anthologies from Open Shutter Press and Fly on the Wall Press. Her work is widely published in journals such as International Times, Vox Populi, Ink Sweat and Tears, Aesthetica, Orbis, The Mackinaw, Cambridge Poetry, The Fenland Reed, Poetry on the Lake, Polismagazino.gr, europeanpoetry.com, Verse-Virtual.org, Magique Publishing, Primelore.com, Deshusa.com, Verseum Literary, Stigmalogou.gr, Area Felix, Masticadoresusa, A Too Powerful Word -Summer 2025, New World Poetry (Chinese)—four of her prose poems, translated by Ma Yongbo, opened the 35th Anniversary Edition dedicated to prose poetry, December 2024.
Publisher Kate Birch describes her work: “Helen’s very personal poetry reveals her strong connection to the natural world while also laying herself open emotionally. She writes with a thoughtful, mesmerising delicacy on love and death, on joy and need, illness and exhaustion.”
I enjoy this collection of poems—Helen has restored her individuality into different animals, plants, and even more tranquil scenes, and this process is neither passive nor deliberately planned. Clearly, this new type of relationship between humans and nature not only opens up a new world for us but also places us in the most fitting position within it. The translator’s non-subjective handling of language style, along with the retention of structures like post-positioned adverbs, allows Helen (who can also be seen as the modern human subject) to faithfully present her sense of restoration within the concise framework of Chinese. Their joint effort gives readers the trinitarian nature of the medium, that precious power which expands through the natural, spiritual, and linguistic ecologies—clear, silent, and growing. (Yan Rong, poet, PhD, professor)
海伦·普莱茨（Helen Pletts）是一位生活在剑桥的英国诗人，其作品已被译为中文、孟加拉语、希腊语、越南语、塞尔维亚语、韩语、阿拉伯语和意大利语。她是中国诗人马永波诗歌的英文合作译者。
普莱茨的诗歌创作屡获殊荣：五度入围布里德波特诗歌奖（2018、2019、2022-2024），两度入选《里亚尔托》自然与地方诗歌奖长名单（2018、2022），入围银杏生态诗歌奖（2019）、英国国家诗歌大赛（2022），获广场散文诗大赛亚军（2022-23）并再度入围该奖项决选名单（2023-24）。
她出版的三部诗集包括与罗米特·伯杰合作的插图诗集《你的眼睛守护着软趾雪花莲》（2022年，ISBN 978-9-657-68177-0，伽马诗歌），以及由青年作家组织/传奇出版社在艺术委员会资助下出版的早期诗集《瓶子银行》（2008年，ISBN 978-1-84923-119-0）与《致训诫之鸽》（2009年，ISBN 978-1-84923-485-6）。其获奖散文诗收录于《广场奖选集》，生态诗歌见于“打开快门”出版社与“墙头蝇”出版社的选集。作品广泛发表于《国际时报》《民众之声》《墨汗泪》《美学》《奥比斯》《麦基诺》《剑桥诗刊》《沼地芦苇》《湖上诗刊》《城邦》《欧洲诗歌》《诗虚拟》《魔法》《原始传说》《德胡萨》《诗界》《理念的圣痕》《菲利克斯领域》以及《新世界诗刊》（中文版）——其中四篇由马永波翻译的散文诗作为开篇之作，刊登于2024年12月出版的散文诗专号（创刊35周年纪念特辑）。
出版人凯特·伯奇如此评价她的作品：“海伦的诗歌极具个人特质，既展现了她与自然世界的深刻关联，又毫无保留地袒露情感。她以一种沉思的、令人着迷的细腻笔触，书写爱与死亡、欢愉与渴求、疾病与衰竭。”
我享受这组诗——海伦把她的个人性还原到了不同的动物、植物甚至更为静谧的场景当中，而且，这个过程并非是被动发生和刻意谋划的；显然，这种人和自然的新型关系，不但为我们敞开了一个新的世界，也在其中安置了我们最为恰切的位置。而译者对语言格调的非主体性处理以及状语后置等形式的保留，让海伦（也可以看作是现代人类主体）的还原意识得以在汉语的简洁框架中忠实呈现。他们的共同努力则使读者获得了三位一体的介质属性，即那宝贵的扩展于自然生态、精神生态和语言生态中的清醒、沉默而生长的力量。（晏榕，诗人，博士，教授）
Ma Yongbo 马永波 was born in 1964, Ph.D, representative of Chinese avant-garde poetry, and a leading scholar in Anglo-American poetry. He is the founder of polyphonic writing and objectified poetics. He is also the first translator to introduce British and American postmodern poetry into Chinese, making contributions that fill gaps, the various postmodern poetry schools in Chinese are mostly guided by his poetics and translation.
He has published over eighty original works and translations since 1986 included 9 poetry collections.He focused on translating and teaching Anglo-American poetry and prose including the work of Dickinson, Whitman, Stevens, Pound, Williams and Ashbery. He published a complete translation of Moby Dick, which has sold over 600,000 copies. He teaches at Nanjing University of Science and Technology. The Collected Poems of Ma Yongbo (four volumes, Eastern Publishing Centre, 2024) comprising 1178 poems, celebrate 40 years of writing poetry.
His work is widely published in international journals such as New American Writing，Livemag, Cafe Review, International Times, Vox Populi, Ink Sweat and Tears, Orbis, Cambridge Poetry, Polismagazino.gr, europeanpoetry.com, Verse-Virtual.org, Magique Publishing, Primelore.com, Verseum Literary, Area Felix，Masticadoresusa，Feed the Holy，ONE, Sindhcourier，Lingo Lexicon，Worldinkers，Avantappalachia，Masticadorescanada，Madswirl，Collaborature，Allyourpoems，Homouniversalisgr，100subtextsmagazine，Pandemoniumjournal，Cultural Reverence，Rochford Street Review，Synchchaos，Ezra，Autumn Sky Poetry Daily，Nuthatchmag，Posit，Yumpu，Our Poetry Archive，All Your Poems，Subliminal.surgery，Atunis，Insightmagazine，Lothlorien Poetry Journal，Acheron，Gorkogazette，A Too Powerful Word，Chiron Review，Gas，Chewers，Medusaskitchen，Beatnikcowboy，Dear O Deer!，New Black Bart Poetry Society, Edge of Humanity，Liveencounters，Big Other etc.
马永波出生于1964年，文学博士，中国先锋诗歌代表人物，领先的英美诗歌学者。他是复调写作和客观化诗学的奠基者，也是第一个将英美后现代诗歌译介进汉语的翻译家，具有填补空白的贡献，汉语中诸种后现代诗歌流派多受其诗学与翻译的引领。
从1986年起，他已出版原创与翻译著作80余卷，包括9部诗集。他专注于翻译和教授英美诗歌和散文，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。他出版了《白鲸》的全译本，销量已超过60万册。他任教于南京理工大学。《马永波诗歌总集》（四卷本，东方出版中心，2024年）共收录1178首诗，庆祝他诗学探索40周年。
All images under individual copyright © to either Ma Yongbo 马永波 or Helen Pletts 海伦·普莱茨
.