Chapter9 The Story of My Life-双语名著无障碍阅读丛书——《假如给我三天光明Three Days to See》

The Story of My Life CHAPTER 9 TNHT1Ran with my teacher and my mother,the journey,and finally the arrival in Boston. How different this journey was from the one I had made to Baltimore two years before!I was no longer a restless,excitable little creature,requiring the attention of everybody on the train to keep me amused.I sat quietly beside Miss Sullivan, taking in with eager interest all that she told me about what she saw out of the car window:the beautiful Tennessee River,the great cottonfields,the hills and woods,and the crowds of laughing negroes at the stations,who waved to the people on the train and brought delicious candy and popcorn balls through the car.On the seat opposite me sat my big rag doll,Nancy,in a new gingham dress and a beruffled sunbonnet,looking at me out of two bead eyes.Some times,when I was not absorbed in Miss Sullivan's descriptions,I remembered Nancy's existence and took her up in my arms,but I generally calmed my conscience by making myself believe that she was asleep. As I shall not have occasion to refer to Nancy again,I wish to tell here a sad experience she had soon after our arrival in Boston,She was covered with dirt -the remains of mud pies I had compelled her to eat,although she had never shown any special liking for them.The laundress at the Perkins Institution ·094· 我的生活 第九章 D departure [di'pa:tfa]n. 1888年5月的波士顿之旅是我人生中另一件重大 出发，起程 事件。如今，当时的准备工作仍然历历在目，仿佛一切 就发生在昨天。我还记得那个旅途，我在沙利文小姐和 母亲的陪伴下，最终到达了波士顿。那场旅行与两年前 的巴尔的摩之行截然不同！那场旅行中，我非常兴奋好 动，聚焦大家的目光来寻找乐趣。这一次，我则安静地 坐在沙利文小姐身旁，聚精会神地听她描述车窗外的风 景：美丽的田纳西河、广袤的棉花地、群山和森林，还 有站台上一群群黑人说笑着跟车上的客人打招呼、不停 地从车窗送进美味的糖果和爆米花。坐在我对侧的是我 的大布娃娃南希，她穿着崭新的花格布裙子，戴着一顶 ②gingham['ginam]a. 用方格色织布缝制的 花边遮阳帽子，两只珠子般的眼晴盯着我看。有时候， ③beruffled[bi'rAfld]a.有 韬皱的 我从沙利文小姐的描述中走神时，就会想起南希的存 sunbonnet ['sAn.bonit]n. (女式)太阳帽 在，并把她抱在怀里。但通常情况下我会告诉自己南希 正在睡觉，从而让自己变得更加安静。 因为以后我再也没有机会谈南希了，所以希望在 此讲述一下我们到达波士顿后她所经历的不幸。她浑 ⑤compel[kam'pel],强 身沾满了污垢一我强迫她吃“泥巴馅饼”，那是我吃 迫，迫使 过的剩余物，虽然她从未表示过喜欢吃那种食品。帕 ⑥laundress[l:ndris]n.洗 衣女工 ·095· The Story of My Life secretly carried her off to give her a bath.This was too much for poor Nancy, When I next saw her she was a formless heap of cotton,which I should not have recognized at all except for the two bead eyes which looked out at me reproachfully②. When the train at last pulled into the station at Boston it was as if a beautiful fairy tale had come true.The "once upon a time"was now;the “far-away country'”was here. We had scarcely arrived at the Perkins Institution for the Blind when I began to make friends with the little blind children.It delighted me inexpressibly to find that they knew the manual alphabet.What joy to talk with other children in my own language!Until then I had been like a foreigner speaking through an interpreter.In the school where Laura Bridgman was taught I was in my own country.It took me some time to appreciate the fact that my new friends were blind.I knew I could not see;but it did not seem possible that all the eager,loving children who gathered round me and joined heartily in my frolics were also blind.I remember the surprise and the pain I felt as I noticed that they placed their hands over mine when I talked to them and that they read books with their fingers.Although I had been told this before,and although I understood my own deprivations,yet I had thought vaguely that since they could hear,they must have a sort of"second sight,"and I was not prepared to find one child and another and yet another deprived of?the same precious gift. But they were so happy and contented that I lost all sense of pain in the pleasure of their companionship. One day spent with the blind children made me feel thoroughly at home in my new environment,and I looked eagerly from one pleasant experience to another as the days flew swiftly by.I could not quite convince myself that there was much world left,for I regarded Boston as the beginning and the end of creation. ·096· 我的生活 金斯盲人学院的女洗衣工偷偷地把她带出去洗了澡， ①heap[hipn.堆，堆积 但可怜的南希无论如何也承受不了这般待遇。当我再 见到她时，她已经成了一团没有形状的棉花团。除了 ②reproachfully 那两只充满责备的珠子般的眼睛在盯着我看外，我一 [riprautffali门ad.责备地 ③pull into(车)进站 点儿也认不出她来了。 当我们的火车在波士顿进站后，我感觉一个美丽的 童话仿佛变成了现实。现在就是童话里所谓的“在很久 以前”，这个地方就是故事里的“遥远的国度”。 我们刚到帕金斯盲人学院，我就开始和那里的盲童 ④manual alphabet手语字 们交朋友了。让我大为高兴的是，他们竟然懂得手语字 母 母。能用我自己的语言跟他们交流，真是一件开心的事 情。而在此之前，我一直像一个外国人那样，需要有人 翻译才能与人交流。当我还待在自己的家乡时，劳拉· 布里奇曼就是在这所学校接受了教育。我花了很长时间 才领会到身边的新朋友也都是盲人的事实。我知道自己 ⑤frolie[frolik]n.嬉戏 看不到东西，不过，我身边这群充满渴望和友爱的孩子 们也看不见任何东西。尽管他们尽情地与我一起嬉戏玩 耍，我还是觉得这是件不大可能的事情。我依然记得我 6 deprivation [depri'veifan] 对这些新朋友讲话的时候，他们把手放在我的手上，而 丧失，损失 且.他们还用手指摸索着读书。对于这一点，我感到既 好奇又苦恼。虽然在我来这学校之前，家人就已经告 ⑦be deprived of被剥夺 诉我这些了，我也知道自己的缺陷：可是，我隐约想到 既然他们能听到声音，那他们一定有一种“第二视觉”。 我并没有准备好去找到一个又一个像我一样被剥夺珍贵 的视觉和听觉的孩子。但是，他们一个个都特别开心， 我也沉浸在他们快乐的陪伴中，完全忘却了忧愁和烦恼。 有一天，我发现自己跟盲童们一起生活在全新的环 境中，已经能够像在家里时那样轻松自在了。时间一天 天过去了，我每天都在褐望获得新的愉悦的经历。我当 时并没有说服自己相信世界还有更广阔的天地，因为我 已经把波士顿当成了创造万物的起点和终点。 ·097· The Story of My Life While we were in Boston we visited Bunker Hill,and there I had my first lesson in history.The story of the brave men who had fought on the spot where we stood excited me greatly.I climbed the monument,counting the steps,and wondering as I went higher and yet higher if the soldiers had climbed this great stairway and shot at the enemy on the ground below. The next day we went to Plymouth by water.This was my first trip on the ocean and my first voyage in a steam boat.How full of life and motion it was! But the rumble of the machinery made me think it was thundering,and I began to cry,because I feared if it rained we should not be able to have our picnic out of doors.I was more interested,I think,in the great rock on which the Pilgrims landed than in anything else in Plymouth.I could touch it,and perhaps that made the coming of the Pilgrims and their toils and great deeds seem more real to me.I have often held in my hand a little model of the Plymouth Rock which a kind gentleman gave me at Pilgrim Hall,and I have fingered its curves, the split in the center and the embossed figures"1620,"and turned over in my mind all that I knew about the wonderful story of the Pilgrims. How my childish imagination glowed with the splendor of their enterprise! I idealized them as the bravest and most generous men that ever sought a home in a strange land.I thought they desired the freedom of their fellow men as well as their own.I was keenly surprised and disappointed years later to learn of their acts of persecution that make us tingle with shame,even while we glory in the courage and energy that gave us our"Country Beautiful." Among the many friends I made in Boston were Mr.William Endicott and his daughter.Their kindness to me was the seed from which many pleasant memories have since grown.One day we visited their beautiful home at Beverly Farms.I remember with delight how I went through their rose-garden,how their dogs,big Leo and little curly-haired Fritz with long ears,came to meet me,and ·098· 我的生活 在波士顿我们一起参观了邦克山，在那里我学到了 第一堂历史课。让我兴奋不已的是，那些英勇的战士就 曾在我们脚下打响了战斗。我数着台阶爬上纪念碑，心 里想象着当年的士兵是不是也是这样爬上高坡，然后居 高临下地射击地面的敌人。 参观完邦克山的第二天，我们走水路去了普利茅 斯，那是我第一次在海上旅行，也是我第一次坐蒸汽船。 ①rumble[rambl]n.隆隆 真没想到汽船竞能坐下那么多人！机器的隆隆声让我误 作响 以为是在打雷，于是我大哭起来，因为一旦下雨我们就 不能外出野餐了。在普利茅斯，我想我对清教徒们登陆 的大礁石更感兴趣。我能用手抚摸那些礁石，这或许让 我更真切地体会到他们最初来到这里的艰辛跋涉和伟大 功绩。我时不时地拿出一块“普利茅斯岩”模型，那是 在清教徒博物馆中一位善良的绅士送给我的。我用手感 受着它的曲线弧度、中间的裂纹，以及刻在上面的数字 “1620”。当时，我的脑海里不断浮现出第一批来到这里 的清教徒们的传奇故事。 我童年幼稚的想象力与他们灿烂无比的光辉一样缤 纷多彩。我理想化地把他们看作是最勇敢、最宽厚的开 拓者，因为他们要在一片陌生的土地上建立家园。我想， ②tingle[tingl]v.使有刺 他们渴望自由，也为同伴们争取了更多自由。很多年后 痛感 我了解到他们是由于受到迫害才离开英国的，这让我十 分震惊和失望。大迫害刺痛着我们，让我们为之感到羞 愧。然而，那场迫害非但没有压垮先辈们，他们反而用 勇气和力量建立起了“美丽新世界”，让我们自豪不已。 我在波士顿交了很多朋友，其中就包括威廉·恩迪 科特先生和他的女儿。他们的友好如同播散在我心中的 快乐记忆的种子。一天，我们去他们美丽的家一贝弗 利庄园拜访了他们。我依然记得当时的场景：我路过他 们家玫瑰园时是多么高兴，他们家的大狗利奥和卷毛长 耳小狗弗里茨是怎么迎接我的，还有动作最敏捷的马儿 ·099· The Story of My Life how Nimrod,the swiftest of the horses,poked his nose into my hands for a pat?and a lump of sugar.I also remember the beach,where for the first time I played in the sand.It was hard,smooth sand,very different from the loose, sharp sand,mingled with kelp and shells,at Brewster.Mr.Endicott told me about the great ships that came sailing by from Boston,bound for Europe.I saw him many times after that,and he was always a good friend to me;indeed,I was thinking of him when I called Boston"the City of Kind Hearts." ·100· 我的生活 ①poke[pauk]把…伸 尼姆罗德是如何伸着鼻子吃我手里的黄油和糖块的。我 ②pat[pat]n.(黄油等的) 也记得那里的沙滩，那是我第一次在沙子中玩耍。那些 小块 沙子坚硬平滑，与布鲁斯特那些混有海藻和贝壳的松软 ③mingle[mingl]v.使混 而又扎手的沙子大相径庭。恩迪科特先生告诉我关于巨 汉 轮从波士顿出发驶向欧洲的故事。后来我经常见到他， ④kelp [kelp]m.海草 他每次都那么友好。事实上，在我把波士顿叫作“慈爱 的城市”的时候，我想到的就是他。 ·101·