Like most Miao dwellings, the Songs' living room windows look out over the paddy fields.
如大多数苗人一样,宋家起居室的窗子可以眺望见成片的梯田。
From early spring, one of these windows is always left open to let the swallows come and go freely.
从早春起,一扇窗子便为了方便燕子往返穿飞而敞开。
Each year, granddad Gu notes the exact day the swallows return. Miao people believe the birds' arrival predicts the timing of the season ahead.
古老爹知晓每年燕子归来的确切时间。苗族人坚信这些鸟儿的归来预示着春季的来临。
This year, they were late. So Gu and the other community elders have agreed that rice planting should be delayed accordingly.
然而今年,它们姗姗来迟。因此古老爹和其他族中长老一致认为今年的插秧应当推迟。
As the Miao prepare their fields for planting, the swallows collect mud to repair their nests and chase after insects across the newly ploughed paddies.
当苗族人为了插秧而整备田地时,燕子们或搜集修整巢穴用的泥巴,或穿越新耕的稻田追逐昆虫。