The song 《时间都去哪儿了》 has been popular recently in China, especially since it was performed by 王铮亮 (Wáng Zhēngliàng) on 春晚. It came up on the radio again just now so I thought I’d have a go at annotating the lyrics in English.
The lyrics were written by 陈曦 (Chén Xī) and the tune by 董冬冬 (Dǒng Dōngdōng - I know, right?).
As always, this is an annotation not a translation - the English here isn’t supposed to work as lyrics.
One thing I wasn’t too sure of was whether to translate certain lines into first or second person in English. The Chinese seems ambiguous to me - either the parent is talking about themselves, or the child. I’ve gone with first person, but it should probably be heard both ways.
http://youtu.be/5SM_ponCkI4
时间都去哪儿了
Shíjiān dōu qù nǎr le
Where Has the Time Gone?
门前老树长新芽
Mén qián lǎo shù zhǎng xīnyá
The old tree before the door has grown new shoots
院里枯木又开花
Yuàn lǐ kūmù yòu kāihuā
The dead tree in the yard is blooming again
半生存了好多话
Bàn shēngcúnle hǎoduō huà
I've held on to so many words over a lifetime
藏进了满头白发
Cáng jìnle mǎn tóu bái fà
— stored them in a head of white hair
记忆中的小脚丫
Jìyì zhōng de xiǎojiǎo yā
In my memory a girl with little feet
肉嘟嘟的小嘴巴
Ròu dū dū de xiǎo zuǐba
and a chubby little mouth
一生把爱交给他
Yīshēng bǎ ài jiāo gěi tā
I gave her my love for a lifetime
只为那一声爸妈
Zhǐ wèi nà yīshēng bà mā
All for the sound of "mum" and "dad"
时间都去哪儿了
Shíjiān dōu qù nǎr le
Where has the time gone?
还没好好感受年轻就老了
Hái méi hǎohāo gǎnshòu niánqīng jiù lǎole
I haven't yet enjoyed youth and I'm already old
生儿养女一辈子
Shēng ér yǎngnǚ yībèizi
Raising sons and daughters for a lifetime
满脑子都是孩子哭了笑了
Mǎn nǎozi dōu shì háizi kūle xiàole
My mind is full of children crying and laughing
时间都去哪儿了
Shíjiān dōu qù nǎr le
Where has the time gone?
还没好好看看你眼睛就花了
Hái méi hǎohǎo kàn kàn nǐ yǎnjīng jiù huāle
I still haven't taken care of you properly, and my eyes are already failing
柴米油盐半辈子
Cháimǐyóuyán bànbèizi
Daily necessities for a lifetime
转眼就只剩下满脸的皱纹了
Zhuǎnyǎn jiù zhǐ shèng xià mǎn liǎn de zhòuwénle
In the blink of an eye, all that's left is a face full of wrinkles