It's Over

It's Over


I always know when an affair is over. And doing translations for me is like having a long love affair. You are committed---or supposed to commit yourself---to the work at hand until you complete it. And so far I always did. Although at times boredom set in and I abandoned the book for awhile, in the end I always picked it up again and continued where I left off. But this time… it’s different. It’s not boredom that stopped me in the middle of the book, not even translator’s block. The words are there, but the feeling’s gone. That’s how I know that it’s over. I cannot continue translating this particular author’s work anymore. I’m not even sure if I will still enjoy reading his future works.


You probably would ask, “What happened?” Simple. He doesn’t move me anymore. No matter how many stars his works get in the reviews and despite tons of praises he gets from the general public and the literary circles, he just doesn’t move me anymore. And I cannot translate books that do not move me. To take it even further, I’m beginning to wonder if this author still writes from the heart, because what he produced lately are redundant of his earlier works. They are echoes.


So I have to stop. Otherwise I will produce a lame work even less than echoes.