世界詩歌日（World Poetry Day）是一個主題日，於每年的3月21日舉辦。該主題日由聯合國教科文組織於1999年發起，目標是向全球宣傳閱讀、寫作、出版和教授詩的重要性。該組織希望透過這一天激發全世界對詩歌的慶祝，保護瀕危語言，並激發詩歌表達。讓過去和現在的詩人都受到尊重，讓朗誦詩歌的口傳傳統也得以復興。

詩是一種創造性的形式，使作家能夠表達深切的感受、經驗和希望。以下挑選3首著名的英詩與大家分享：

★第一首詩是美國十九世紀重要詩人—艾蜜莉‧狄金生(Emily Dickinson , 1830年—1886年)的作品。這首詩富有想像力地將希望描繪成一隻棲息在靈魂裡的長著羽毛的鳥，即使在逆境中也能唱出自己的曲調。這首詩強調了希望的持久性與韌性，以及即使在最惡劣的條件下也能提供安慰和溫暖的能力。

1. “Hope” is the Thing with Feathers

By Emily Dickinson

Hope is the thing with feathers

That perches in the soul,

And sings the tune without the words,

And never stops at all,

And sweetest in the gale is heard;

And sore must be the storm

That could abash the little bird

That kept so many warm.

I’ve heard it in the chillest land,

And on the strangest sea;

Yet, never, in extremity,

It asked a crumb of me.

希望是帶著羽毛的靈物

希望是帶著羽毛的靈物，

停棲在靈魂內，

歌唱旋律無字，

永不停息。

狂風中尤為甜美；

風暴必定凶猛，

才可能嚇倒小鳥，

它曾溫暖眾多。

我在最寒冷的土地聽見過它，

在最陌生的海上；

然而，即使在極端困境中，

它也從未向我討過一絲麵麪包屑！

★ 第二首詩《未選擇的路》是羅伯特‧弗羅斯特的作品。羅伯特‧弗羅斯特(1874一1963) 是二十世紀最知名的美國作家之一。弗羅斯特善於運用眼前看似平淡無奇的瑣事，來表達某種深刻的思想或哲理。換言之，他長於運用具體的事物以說明抽象的概念，使讀者易於接受和瞭解。《未選擇的路》是一首探討「選擇的複雜矛盾心境、信念與決心」的詩作，詩的文字樸實不造作，節奏卻鮮明而意境優美，含義雋永而餘韻無窮。表面上描述旅人面對岔路而躊躇不決的心情，實際上卻是暗喻人生道路是靠自己決定的，有得有失，有捨有得。如人飲水，冷暖自知。

2.The Road Not Taken

By Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To Where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

SomeWhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

未選擇的路

黃葉林中出條岔路，

無奈一人難於兼顧，

順著一條婉蜒小路，

久久佇立極目遠眺，

只見小徑拐進灌木。

接著選擇了另一條，

同樣清楚似乎更好，

引人踩踏鋪滿茂草，

踏在其間難分彼此，

儘管真有兩條道。

清晨裡裏躺著兩條路，

一樣葉被無人踏髒，

願將第一條來日補，

但知條條相連遠途，

懷疑日後怎能回返。

在很久以後某一地，

我將歎息訴說於人，

兩路岔開在樹林裏，

我選的那條足跡稀，

而一切差別由此起。

★第三首詩《等你年老》，是葉慈的作品。威廉·巴特勒·葉慈（William Butler Yeats，1865-1939年），是出身愛爾蘭的詩人。他是二十世紀文學界最具代表性的人物之一。葉慈的這首詩是一首反思失去的愛情和時間流逝的詩。這首詩隱藏某種道德訓誡——真愛是持久而超越的，我們在青春中珍視的東西可能會隨著時間的流逝而消失。

3. When You Are Old

By William Butler Yeats

When you are old and grey and full of sleep,

And nodding by the fire, take down this book,

And slowly read, and dream of the soft look

Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep;

How many loved your moments of glad grace,

And loved your beauty with love false or true,

But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you,

And loved the sorrows of your changing face;

And bending down beside the glowing bars,

Murmur, a little sadly, how Love fled

And paced upon the mountains overhead

And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.

等你年老

等你年老髮蒼，沉沉欲睡，

在爐邊打盹時，取下這本書，

慢慢閱讀，遐想你雙眸當初

有多麼溫柔，有多麼深邃；：

多少人愛戀你的神采飛揚，

愛你的美貌，而用情或假或真，

但有一人愛你朝聖的靈魂，

也愛你臉上變幻的憂傷；：

俯身於炙熱的木柴邊，

喃喃聞嘆，真愛無蹤；

漫步在崇山峻嶺之中，

藏容於點點繁星之間。