◎ Susan Fiedler
Job was not a brilliant man. He swept floors for a living. He believed that Tarzan was a real man, and that all those movies were really documentaries of Tarzan’s life. He was the butt of many jokes, yet he taught me about the essence of a “real man”: love and respect for women, honor, kindness and gentleness.
喬布并不是個聰明的人,他以打掃樓道為生。他相信在現(xiàn)實生活中,泰山是真實存在的,所有的那些電影都是泰山生活的真實記錄片。他是大家取笑的對象,然而,他教會了我“真正的人”應有的品質:愛護與尊重女性、榮譽、善良和親切。
Job embraced life in unexpected, simple ways. He showed up for work, on time. He never bragged about himself, and he loved only one woman—his wife, Molly. Job filled a void in my life. He was principled and straightforward in my world of dishonor and lies. He loved me as his very own grandchild, even though he was a year younger than my father.
喬布用出人意料的簡單方式擁抱生活。他工作準時,從不吹噓自己,而且只愛一個女人——他的妻子莫莉。喬布填補了我生命中的空白。在我那滿布謊言和恥辱的世界里,他是如此有原則和正直。他像愛自己的孫女一樣愛我,盡管他比我父親還小一歲。
I will never forget my graduation from high school. That was a day of hopeless inevitability for me. My father, who was a heavy drinker, began his celebration very early in the day. By the time we congregated in the high school gymnasium, my father had congratulated himself through nearly a case of beer.
我永遠也不會忘記高中畢業(yè)時的情形。那天對我來說本是注定讓人絕望的。我的酒鬼父親,那天一大早就開始自己狂歡了。當我們在學校體育館集中慶祝時,他已浸在幾乎一箱啤酒里自己作樂了。
I tried to be invisible within a sea of faces. I wanted to run away. Disappear. Most of all I wanted no one to guess whose kid I was. I was betrayed by my last name, which began with the letter “A”, so I was the first graduate on the first row. Being a red-head gave me even more exposure, and the baccalaureate speaker, who had never met me, decided to use me as his audio-visual aid.
我盡力讓自己淹沒在人山人海里。我很想要離家出走,我想消失。我最希望的,就是沒人知道我是誰的孩子??晌业男帐铣鲑u了我。我姓氏的首字母是“A”,因此我是第一排的第一個畢業(yè)生。滿頭的紅發(fā)讓我更加顯眼,而那個與我從未謀面的畢業(yè)致辭者,決定把我當做輔助他“教學的工具”。
“This young lady, this bright young lady, with the bright red hair.” His voice rolled through the auditorium in sonorous phrases, as I sank lower in my seat. Over to my left, at the door of the auditorium, was a seating arrangement for the “elderly”. And there sat Molly, age 61, and Job, age 47, with all of the grandparents. My heart ached when I looked at them, wishing with all my heart that I were, truly, their grandchild.
“這位小姐,這位長著一頭亮麗紅發(fā)的漂亮女士。”他言辭夸張,洪亮的聲音在禮堂里盤旋回響,而座位上的我縮得更低了。我左邊的禮堂門口處,是給“長者”安排的座位區(qū)。61歲的莫莉和47歲的喬布,跟其他人的祖父母們都坐在那兒。我望著他們,心如刀割。我多么希望我真是他們的孫女。
As the speaker continued with his speech, he reached a point where he had an uncontrollable urge to introduce “all the wonderful people, who have made this day possible!”
發(fā)言者繼續(xù)著他的演講,說到點子上時,他按捺不住內(nèi)心的激動,要介紹“所有成就了今天畢業(yè)禮的了不起的人!”
“All the siblings of the graduates, please, stand.” I slipped lower in my seat, glancing hurriedly around, hoping to remain invisible.
“所有即將畢業(yè)的同學,請起立。”我靠在座位上,身子藏得更低了,眼睛快速地向周圍掃視了一下,但愿沒人看得見我。
“Now, all the parents, please stand.” Dear Lord, I thought, I’m sure my father can’t stand, even if he wanted to. I didn’t bother to look around.
“現(xiàn)在,所有的父母,請起立。”天啊,我暗地里想,我敢肯定,即使我父親想站,他也站不起來了。我甚至看都不用看了。
“Now the grandparents” I closed my eyes, dreading the hopelessness of my situation. I had no grandparent to stand proudly for me. I finally opened my eyes, and there they were Job and Molly, standing proudly with all the other grandparents. Job looked over at me, his eyes beaming like diamonds.
“現(xiàn)在,祖父母們……”我閉上眼睛,處境讓我不堪設想。沒有祖父母會為我自豪地站起來。我最后睜開了眼睛,他們站起來了——喬布和莫莉,他們跟所有的祖父母一起自豪地站起來了。喬布看著我,眼睛里閃爍著鉆石般的光芒。
“I’m so proud of you.” he smiled as he mouthed the words that I will never forget. I knew that he stood there, not out of duty, but because of his love for me!
“我真為你感到驕傲。”他做著口形說道,說的時候面帶笑容,而我將永遠也不會忘記這些話。我知道,他站起來并不是出于責任,而是因為他對我的愛!