为你读书：《你富有吗？》Are You Rich?

 

原文欣赏

It was Thanksgiving morning and in the crowded kitchen of my small home I was busy preparing the traditional Thanksgiving turkey when the doorbell rang. I opened the front door and saw two small children in rags huddling together inside the storm door on the top step.

感恩节的早晨，狭小的家里。我正在拥挤的厨房里忙着烹调传统特色的感恩节火鸡。突然，门铃响了。我打开前门，只见两个衣衫褴褛的小孩 蜷缩着相互偎依在我家挡风门栋里的最高台阶上。

"Any old papers, lady?"

"太太，请问您有旧报纸吗?"

I was busy. I wanted to say no — until I looked down at their feet. Thin little sandals, sopped with sleet.

当时，我正忙得不可开交。我本来想对他们说没有，但当我往下看到他们脚上只穿着一双被冰雪浸湿得再单薄不过的便鞋时，我改变了主意。

"Come in and I'll make you a cup of hot cocoa."

"进屋来吧，我来给你们煮一杯热可可茶。"

There was no conversation. Their soggy sandals left marks upon the hearthstone. I served them cocoa and toast with jam to fortify against the chill outside. Then I went back to the kitchen and started again on my household budget.

他们一声不响地跟我进了屋，他们浸湿的便鞋在炉边留下了一连串的脚印。我给他们端上可可茶和果酱面包，以便帮助他们抵御外面的风寒。然后我回到了厨房，又开始了我的家庭理财工作。

 

 

The silence in the front room struck through to me. I looked in. The girl held the empty cup in her hands, looking at it. The boy asked in a flat voice, "Lady ... are you rich?"

前屋里一片沉默，这让我感到很奇怪。我向屋里望去，只见小女孩手里端着空茶杯，认真地凝视着它。小男孩则平静地问道：“太太，您富有吗 ?"

"Am I rich? Mercy, no!" I looked at my shabby slipcovers. The girl put her cup back in its saucer— carefully.

"我富有吗? 天哪，我可算不上。"我盯着那破旧的沙发套说道。这时，那个小女孩非常小心地把杯子放回茶碟里。

"Your cups match your saucers."

"您的杯子和茶碟非常相配。"

Her voice was old, with a hunger that was not of the stomach. They left then, holding their bundles of papers against the wind. They hadn't said thank you. They didn't need to. They had done more than that. Plain blue pottery cups and saucers. But they matched.

她说话的声音听起来很成熟，并带着一种饥渴，而这种饥渴却非出于对食物的饥渴。然后，他们抱着那束旧报纸，顶着风雪离开了。他们甚至连一声"谢谢"都没有说。其实，他们根本没有必要说。他们的表现已经胜过了道谢。非常朴素的一对蓝色陶瓷杯碟，但它们确实很相配。

I tasted the potatoes and stirred the gravy. Potatoes and brown gravy, a roof over our heads, my man with a good steady job — these things matched, too.

我品尝了一下锅里煮着的土豆，然后又搅拌了几下肉汁。棕色肉汤加土豆，遮风挡雨的房子，拥有一份稳定工作的丈夫——这一切的一切同样也很匹配。

I moved the chairs back from the fire and tidied the living room. The muddy prints of small sandals were still wet upon my hearth. I let them be. I want them there in case I ever forget again how very rich I am.

我把椅子从炉边向后拉开些，然后将起居室整理干净。炉边留下的泥脚印还没有干。其实，我想让它们留在那里。想让它们留在那里，以便提醒我不要忘记我是多么的富有。