忘記和記 [Mong Gei Wo Gei] [English translation]

Take a breath, flee to the ocean depths

Beautiful yearning, for this dry land has no compare

When black hair fades to white, I think of you

When the streets grow still at night, I think of you

Lingering against the shoreline once more

And I find myself between two worlds

No need to recall, as thoughts and memories run free without fear

Your devilish self, lured me deep into the past

As I chase her listless love, I think of you

As the plane shakes in troubled flight, I think of you

Though I work to forget the smell, of your skin and hair

But the more that I forget, the more exquisite it all becomes

While I might not find love next year, with each sunset and each moonrise, I still will ache for you

I might try to drown all my feelings, but I'd still feel the aftertaste

Maybe I should warmly decline, and justify this icy parting

Only remembering your cruel knife, that hurt until there was nothing left to say

The past calls to my soul, and with what is left of my time, I still will ache for you

In your wake, stagnant waters faintly ripple1, yet are still radiant and enchanting to me

I sit in the darkened room of my silent bitterness, to watch you star on film again

Could it be that I love you too much, just daring for heaven and earth to meet once more?

Who should one recall? Who shouldn't one recall?

With science, who can give a reason?

Who should one recall? Who shouldn't one recall?

No need to ask the gods; trust in tears

No one has power over who I ache for in my heart

My unresolved desires, must too be forgotten

Too weary, too weary, too weary

Though lovers may have no love, with each sunset and each moonrise, I still will ache for you

To hate and to love one other, yet share the same bed, leaves an unexpected aftertaste of tears

So tired of slaving away gracefully, I bid goodbye to your influence

After smiling and stepping past the moments of past love, I find myself back where I had once started

When the past had yet to fall into the past, I truly did not know how badly I ached for you

Though locked down tightly, every night I am caught off guard

Like being somewhere in a dark room, forever looking for a place to await you

Could it be, it was an impossible dream, for heaven and earth to meet once more

Who can choose... to forget or remember...

1. 死水微瀾 is the name of a well-known Chinese novel about the waning years of the Qing Dynasty, where society had become stagnant after defeats to colonialist powers, while economic forces and political undercurrents stir up small ripples and faint disturbances in the malaise. In this song it probably refers to a state of uneasy stagnation