面包和黄油--盖尔.布兰代斯

致迈克尔

我经常琢磨人们如何
算东西的--简单的东西像
面包和黄油。第一个人如何知道
磨面，揉面，和烘培，
加上牛奶，瞥去奶油，搅拌？
有人如何意识到他们会把
橄榄果加进碱液或让葡萄汁
在橡木桶里发酵呢？如何，什么时候
我们最开始彼此向对方靠近，
知道碰触我们的舌头，
在我们的脑袋知道
我们反正要接吻呢？

I often wonder how people figured
things out—simple things like bread
and butter. How did the first person know
to grind and knead and bake,
to milk and skim and churn?
How did someone realize they could soak
olives in lye or let grape juice ferment
inside casks of oak? How, when
we first leaned toward each other,
did our tongues know to touch
before our brains knew
we were going to kiss at all?

“Bread and Butter” by Gayle Brandeis from The Selfless Bliss of the Body. © Finishing Line Press, 2017.