Once, when I was a teenager, my father and I were standing in line to buy tickets for the circus. Finally, there was only one family between us and the ticket counter.
十几岁时,有一次父亲带我去马戏团看表演.我们站在长长的队伍里等着买票.终于,我们前面只剩一家人了.
This family made a big impression on me. There were eight children, all probably under the age of 12. You could tell they didn't have a lot of money.
这一家人给我留下了深刻的印象.他们一共有八个孩子,可能都不到十二岁.显然,这不是一个富裕的家庭.
Their clothes were not expensive, but they were clean. The children were well-behaved, all of them standing in line, two-by-two behind their parents, holding hands. They were excitedly jabbering about the clowns, elephants, and other acts they would see that night.
他们衣着虽不奢华,但很整洁.孩子们都懂礼貌,两两一排,手拉手站在队伍里,跟在父母身后.他们兴奋地谈论着他们将要看到的小丑、大象和其他马戏表演.
One could sense they had never been to the circus before. It promised to be a highlight of their young lives. The father and mother were at the head of the pack, standing proud as could be.
凭我的直觉,这些孩子可能从未看过马戏.因此,那一定将会是他们度过的最精彩的一天.他们的父母骄傲地站在队伍的最前面.
The mother was holding her husband's hand, looking up at him as if to say, "You're my knight in shining armor."
那位母亲拉着丈夫的手,抬头望着他,似乎在说："你就是那个身穿闪亮盔甲,护卫我的骑士."
He was smiling and basking in pride, looking back at her as if to reply, "You got that right."
那位父亲面带微笑,自豪地看着妻子,好像在回答："你说得很对."
The ticket lady asked the father how many tickets he wanted. He proudly responded, "Please let me buy eight children's tickets and two adult tickets so I can take my family to the circus."
售票小姐问他要买几张票.他得意地回答道："八张儿童票、两张成人票,我要带全家人一起看马戏."
The ticket lady quoted the price. The man's wife let go of his hand, her head dropped, and his lip began to quiver. The father leaned a little closer and asked, "How much did you say?"
售票小姐报了价.突然,那位母亲拉着丈夫的手松开了,头垂了下去.而那位父亲的嘴唇开始颤抖起来,他向前挪了挪,问道："刚才你说一共多少钱?"
The ticket lady again quoted the price. The man didn't have enough money.
售票小姐又重复了一遍.他的钱不够.
How was he supposed to turn and tell his eight kids that he didn't have enough money to take them to the circus? Seeing what was going on, my dad put his hand in his pocket, pulled out a$20 bill and dropped it on the ground. (We were not wealthy in any sense of the word!)
但他该怎样转身告诉八个孩子,他的钱不够让他们去看表演呢?这时,我的父亲把手伸进了口袋,掏出二十美元,丢在地上.（从任何意义上说,我们绝非有钱人!）
My father reached down, picked up the bill, tapped the man on the shoulder and said, "Excuse me, sir, this fell out of your pocket."
接着,父亲弯腰把那张钞票又捡了起来,拍了拍前面那位父亲的肩膀,说："先生,打扰一下,这是从您口袋里掉出来的."
The man knew what was going on. He wasn't begging for a handout but certainly appreciated the help in a desperate, heartbreaking, embarrassing situation. He looked straight into my dad's eyes, took my dad's hand in both of his, squeezed tightly onto the$20 bill, and with his lip quivering and a tear running down his cheek, he replied, "Thank you, thank you, sir. This really means a lot to me and my family."
这位先生立刻领会了父亲的意思.他并没有乞求施舍,但在这种绝望、令人伤心和尴尬的窘境中,有人向他伸出援助之手,他绝对感激不已.他凝视着父亲的眼睛,握着父亲的手,把手里那张二十美元攥得紧紧的.他的嘴唇颤抖了,一滴泪水滑过脸颊,说："谢谢,谢谢您,先生.您帮了我,也帮了我们全家."
My father and I went back to our car and drove home. We didn't go to the circus that night, but we didn't go without.
之后,父亲开车带我回家了.虽然那天晚上我们没看成马戏,但我们并没白跑一趟.
