評論
打印
Clearing in the Sky
半空中的一塊空地
Jesse Stuart
杰西·斯圖亞特
"This is the way," said my father, pointing with his cane across the deep valley below us. "I want to show you something!"
“就是這條路。”我父親一面跟我說道，一面用他的拐杖指了指下面深深山谷的對面。“我想給你看樣東西！”
"Isn't it too hot for you to do much walking?" I wiped the streams of sweat from my face to keep them from stinging my eyes.
“你不覺得對你來說今天天氣實在太熱，不宜走太多路嗎？” 我擦去臉上直往下淌的汗水，以免汗水刺痛我的眼睛。
I didn't want to go with him. I had just finished walking a half mile uphill from my home to his, carrying a basket of dishes to Mom. I knew how hot it was. I knew also that from January until April my father had gone to eight different doctors. And they had all told him not to walk far.
我實在不想和他一起走。我剛剛從自己家里帶了一籃子飯菜，爬了半里山路上來送給媽媽。我知道天氣有多熱。而且我還知道，從一月到四月，我爸去看過八個大夫，他們都叫他別走太多路。
But I could not protest to him now. When he made up his mind to do a thing, he would do it. He didn't care if it was 100F in the shade or 20F below zero. So I followed him down the little path between the pasture and the meadow.
可是，我也知道我現在反對他沒用。他要是拿定主意做某件事情，他就一定要做。他根本不管連蔭涼處的溫度都到了華氏100度還是零下20度。所以我只好跟著他往牧場和草地之間的小路走去。
Suddenly he stopped, took out his pocketknife, and cut a wisp of alfalfa. He held it up in the sun."Look at this, Jess!" he bragged. "Did you ever see better alfalfa grow out of the earth?"
他突然停了下來，取出了口袋里的小刀，割了一小把苜蓿，然后在陽光中將它舉了起來。“看看這個，杰西！”他得意地說。“你這輩子見過比這更好的苜蓿嗎？”
"It's the best-looking hay I've ever seen," I said.
“這是我見到過的最好的牧草。”我說道。
"When I bought this land everybody said I was crazy." He bragged again. "It took me thirty years to make it do this!"
“當年我買這塊地的時候，大家都說我瘋了。”他又吹噓說。“我花了三十年的時間才讓它上面的東西長得這么好！”
