Childhood dreams come back to haunt me
童年的夢重又縈繞我心頭
Running along the brook, down to the hatchery, what heavenly joy this was when school was over!
放學后,有什么比沿著小溪跑到孵卵處更能給人如在天堂般的快樂!
We would play in the hay, the constant tweeting of the hatchlings—a constant background symphony.
我們會在干草中嬉戲,孵出的小鳥不停地鳴叫,這是不間斷的背景交響樂。
Then on to our old haunt, the hazel grove.
接著,到我們經常去的小榛樹林。
No hazards there, nothing but the healing sound of silence.
那兒除了有治療功用的寂靜之外,沒有任何危險的東西。
There was that freckled little girl with her hazel eyes who would come with us.
有一個長著雀斑的、淡褐色眼睛的小女孩會跟著我們。
Oh, was she a cutie! “when I grow up, I'm going to marry you.” I said to her on more than one occasion.
噢,她真漂亮!“我長大了要娶你,”我不止一次這么對她說,
“don't count your chickens before they're hatched!” she would invariably reply with a haughty laugh.
“不要在蛋還沒孵出時就數雞!”她總是高傲地笑著回答。
“time will tell.” I would sigh to myself.
“等著瞧,”我會對自己嘆氣道。
At least, I did not detect any note of rejection or hatred, she was just playing hard to get.
至少,我沒有從中聽出任何拒絕或者憎恨的意思。她只是讓我覺得很難做到。
Well, time has moved on, and my hasty words of all those years ago have come back to haunt me.
好了,時間過去了,這么多年前我說的草率的話重又縈繞在我心頭。
I did marry that girl, but now she is gross and fat.
我的確娶了那個女孩,但是,她現在既粗俗,又肥胖。
Some people talk of marriage as a safe haven, heaven even, but for me it has turned out to be nothing less than purgatory here on earth.
有的人說婚姻是安全的避難所,甚至說是天堂,但對于我來說,它簡直是地球上的煉獄。
My innocent childhood dreams have vanished in a haze, trapped as I am in a monotonous routine of bondage.
由于如今的我已深陷在單調乏味的日常生活的束縛中而難以自拔,那么童年時間的天真夢想自然也就隨著薄霧的消失而消失殆盡了。
How am I to heal my broken heart?
我如何為我破碎的心療傷呢?
Would I feel better if I took a hatchet to her, just to end this nightmare?
如果我向她舉起一把短柄斧,結束這場噩夢,我會感覺好一些嗎?
Nonsense! Let me hasten to say that I could never do such a thing!
胡說八道!讓我趕快說我永遠不能做這樣的事情!
Anyway, it would be far too hazardous for my own well-being.
總之,對于我自己的幸福來說,那樣太冒險了。
I would get caught, and then what?
我會被捕,然后呢?