評論
打印
Before we take off, we all participate in a mental roll call. Where is the silent woman who sits up front and never responds to our cheery greetings? Here she comes. Her worn clothing suggests she doesn't have much money to spare, but she always clutches an extra cup of coffee for the driver.
我們出發之前，腦子里都會默默點一次名：坐在車前面、從來不理踩我們愉快招呼的那個沉默女人在哪里？這不，她來了。她破舊的衣服表明她并沒有多少余錢，但她總是會給司機帶一杯咖啡。
Where is the factory security guard who comes off a long night shift and somehow makes us protected? There he is, slumping in his seat with his eyes closed until the precise moment that the driver approaches his corner. Then, reluctantly, his eyes open, and he heaves himself to the front door of the bus.
那個值完漫長夜班、讓我們覺得受到保護的工廠保安又在哪兒？哦，他在那兒呢，閉著眼睛低低地坐在座位上，司機開到他要下車的街角那一瞬間他才會準時睜開眼睛。然后，睜著眼睛，不太情愿似地，朝車的前門走去。
There is the rotund fellow who comes into town, buys his Sunday newspaper, joins us for a bagel in the coffee shop, and rides back to his stop with his paper clutched under his arm. One morning, as he moved forward to board, he collapsed on the sidewalk. We all leaped to his aid. Anonymous arms cradled his head until an ambulance arrived. A prayerful silence reigned as we pulled away. Then someone spotted his newspaper in the gutter, and the driver stopped while we slipped the paper into the ambulance beside its passenger. The bus was very late that morning. The next Sunday the man was back with a fresh newspaper and an unmistakably grateful smile.
還有那個矮胖的家伙。他進城來，買一份周日報紙，和我們一起在咖啡店吃個硬面包圈，然后坐車回到他那個站，報紙夾在胳膊底下。有一天，他正往前走準備上車，突然癱倒在人行道上。我們全都迅速施以援手。不知是誰把他的頭抱在懷里直到救護車來到，我們開走時，大家都在靜靜地為他祈禱。這時有人看到他的報紙還在排水溝里，司機停了車，我們把報紙塞到救護車的乘客身邊。那天上午，公共汽車特別遲。第二個星期天，那人帶著一份新的報紙回來了，臉上掛著毋庸置疑的感激的微笑。
We also get smiles from a Mexican couple as they board the bus hand in hand. When they alight, they are still holding hands. The woman was pregnant late last year, and one day her change of shape confirmed that she had delivered the child. We even felt a little pride at the thought of our extended family.
我們也從一對墨西哥夫婦那兒得到微笑。他們上車時手牽手，下車時還是緊握彼此的手。去年年底那女人懷孕了。有一天，她的體型變化表明她已經生下了孩子。想到這大家庭又有新的成員加人，我們甚至有點自豪的感覺。
