You may have noticed that I've posted my Chinese translation of Heibon a while back but didn't follow through with its English translation. I have been struggling. The song's lyrics was so beautiful and yet extremely hard to convey in English. Even my Chinese translation is incapable of capturing the subtleties in the original lyrics.
I love the song the first time I heard it, especially in the last verse when Karashima Midori uses her falsetto to sing "Daiji ni shite". It was like the sound of angel.
The story of the song is not completely clear from the lyrics. It could be that the woman broke up with his man, and the man get married. But when I read it, it's more like an affair in the first place. After they broke up, the woman saw him while he's boarding a bus. He turned around and saw her as well. The woman was praying that he would not recognize her. Even if he did, she'd rather him say nothing and let them remained strangers. Otherwise, she would not know what'd happen next because she's still deeply in love with him.
"Heibon (平凡)" means "ordinary". Or should I say "ordinariness" since it's a noun. Anyway, I think the title "Ordinary" is a better fit. If a song reveals the writer's heart, Karashima Midori is telling that she thinks having a loved one and a family is no ordinary thing at all.
There used to be a few MVs having better audio and video, but this is the best I could find on YouTube. Enjoy!
平凡
曲、詞：辛島美登里
あなたを見た 風のまんなかで
右肩を下げぎみに 歩く癖
嬉しそうでも 辛そうでもなく
ただ少しだけ 疲れて
並木道の向こうからくるバス
乗り込むあなた 振り向いた⋯
何も言わないで 何も言わないで
気づいても 人違いにしておいて
何も言わないで そうよ言わないで
私も 夢をみたと 信じるから
変わらないの この古い街は
永遠に 季節をくり返して
秋に散った イチョウも春には
やわらかな葉を やどすわ
家族の待つ 灯へ伸びる影
それを”平凡”と思わない⋯
何も言わないで 何も言わないで
触れないでいい愛だって あるはず
何も言わないで そうよ言わないで
全て失う 勇気がないのなら
一番好きな人とは結ばれないと、知ってる
受けとめて 逆らわないで 風景みたいに 生きたいの
何も言わないで 何も言わないで
優しい嘘も あぁ 時にはついて
何も言わないで そうよ瞳の前の
空気のような愛を 大事にして
空気のような愛を 大事にして
Ordinary
Composer, Lyrics: Karashima Midori
I saw you in the middle of the wind
As usual, your right shoulder was dipping slightly as you’re walking
You looked neither joyful nor sad, just a little bit tired
A bus came through the street, trees lying on both sides
As soon as you got in, you started to turn around and looked in my direction…
Please don’t say anything, please
Even if you notice me, just pretend that you’ve mistaken me as someone else, would you?
Please don’t say anything. That’s right, don’t say anything please.
That's because I would also convince myself that all this was just a dream
The season revolves eternally around this never changing old town
Even scattered ginkgo leaves of autumn bear buds towards tender leaves of spring
A shadow extending home towards his loved one waiting under the light
I don't think that's “ordinary” at all
Please don’t say anything, please
Some love better remains untouched
Please don’t say anything. That’s right, don’t say anything.
Unless you have the courage to risk losing everything
I knew all along that I couldn't be with the person I love
And so I surrender and accept my fate,
and just want to live as if I were background scenery around you
Please don’t say anything, please
Sometimes, it’s necessary to tell a white lie
Please don’t say anything. That’s right.
Please treasure our love, though vain and invisible as the air in front of us
Please treasure our love, though vain and invisible as the air in front of us
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