A Coke and a Smile
I know now that the man who sat with me on the old wooden stairs that hot summer night over thirty-five years ago was not a tall man. But to a five-year-old, he was a giant. We sat side by side, watching the sun go down behind the old Texaco service station across the busy street. A street that I was never allowed to cross unless accompanied by an adult, or at the very least, an older sibling.
可樂與微笑
我現在知道，35年前那個炎熱夏夜和我坐在破舊的木樓梯上的老人并不高大，但對一個5歲的孩子來說，他卻是一個巨人。我們并排坐著，看著太陽落在繁忙的街對面那個老德克薩克加油站的背后。除非有大人或至少一個哥哥或姐姐陪著，我從未被允許穿過那條街。
Cherry-scented smoke from Grampy’s pipe kept the hungry mosquitoes at bay while gray, wispy swirls danced around our heads. Now and again, he blew a smoke ring and laughed as I tried to target the hole with my finger. I, clad in a cool summer nightie, and Grampy, his sleeveless T-shirt, sat watching the traffic. We counted cars and tried to guess the color of the next one to turn the corner.
從祖父煙斗里噴出的白色煙霧在我們腦袋周圍上下旋繞，它們散發的櫻桃香味使貪婪的蚊子不敢靠近。他不時地噴出一串煙圈，在我試著將手指插入煙圈時他放聲大笑。我穿著涼爽的小睡衣，祖父穿著他的無袖T恤，坐在那兒觀看繁忙的交通。我們數著過往的車輛，并猜想著下一輛拐過街角的汽車的顏色。
Once again, I was caught in the middle of circumstances. The fourth born of six children, it was not uncommon that I was either too young or too old for something. This night I was both. While my two baby brothers slept inside the house, my three older siblings played with friends around the corner, where I was not allowed to go. I stayed with Grampy, and that was okay with me. I was where I wanted to be. My grandfather was baby-sitting while my mother, father and grandmother went out.
我又一次陷于兩頭都夠不上的中間境遇，作為6個孩子中的老四，很多事情對于我來說不是因為年齡太小，就是太大而不合適。那天夜里就是這樣。我的兩個小兄弟在屋里睡覺，我的另外3個長兄和姐姐在拐角與小伙伴們玩，而我是不允許去那里的。我與祖父呆在一起，這也挺好，正是我想呆的地方。在父母和祖母外出時，祖父就在家看孩子。
Thirsty?" Grampy asked, never removing the pipe from his mouth.
" Yes," was my reply." How would you like to run over to the gas station there and get yourself a bottle of Coke?"
I couldn’t believe my ears. Had I heard right? Was he talking to me? On my family’s modest income, Coke was not a part of our budget or diet. A few tantalizing sips was all I had ever had, and certainly never my own bottle.
" Okay," I replied shyly, already wondering how I would get across the street. Surely Grampy was going to come with me.
"渴嗎?"祖父煙斗不離口地問我。
"是的。"我回答說。"跑到街對面的加油站去給你自己買瓶可樂怎么樣?"
我簡直不敢相信自己的耳朵，我沒有聽錯吧?他是在跟我說話嗎?就我們家微薄的收入來說，可樂不是我們家庭開銷的一部分。我只是迫不及待地啜過幾小口，從來沒有自己喝過一瓶。
"好的。"我害羞地回答說，已經在想著該怎樣穿過馬路，祖父當然會跟我一塊。
Grampy stretched his long leg out straight and reached his huge hand deep into the pocket. I could hear the familiar jangling of the loose change he always carried. Opening his fist, he exposed a mound of silver coins. There must have been a million dollars there. He instructed me to pick out a dime. After he deposited the rest of the change back into his pocket, he stood up.
" Okay," he said, helping me down the stairs and to the curb, " I’m going to stay here and keep an ear out for the babies. I’ll tell you when it’s safe to cross. You go over to the Coke machine, get your Coke and come back out. Wait for me to tell you when it’s safe to cross back."
祖父將他的長腿伸直，把他的大手伸進口袋。我能聽到零錢相碰而發出的熟悉的丁當聲，他總是把這些零錢帶在身上。他張開手，露出了一堆寶貝似的銀幣。那里面一定有100萬美元!他讓我拿出一個1角的硬幣。把零錢放回口袋后，他站了起來。
"好吧，"他說，幫著我下樓梯到馬路沿兒那兒去，"我站在這兒，聽著屋里的兩個孩子有沒有動靜，什么時候穿過馬路安全，我會告訴你的。你到對面的可樂機那兒買到你的可樂后再走回來。等著我告訴你什么時候過馬路安全。"
My heart pounded. I clutched my dime tightly in my sweaty palm. Excitement took my breath away.
Grampy held my hand tightly. Together we looked up the street and down, and back up again. He stepped off the curb and told me it was safe to cross. He let go of my hand and I ran. I ran faster than I had ever run before. The street seemed wide. I wondered if I would make it to the other side. Reaching the other side, I turned to find Grampy. There he was, standing exactly where I had left him, smiling proudly. I waved.
" Go on, hurry up," he yelled.
我的心砰砰地跳著，緊緊地用汗手攥著那枚1角的硬幣，興奮地喘不上氣來。
祖父緊緊地拉著我的手，我們一塊看了看大街的前后左右。他走下馬路沿兒，告訴我現在可以過去了。他放開我的手，我跑了起來。我從沒有跑得這么快過。街道似乎很寬，我懷疑自己是否能跑到對面。跑到對面后，我回頭尋找祖父，他正站在我離開他的地方，為我自豪地微笑著。我朝他揮了揮手。
"接著走，快點。"他喊道。
My heart pounded wildly as I walked inside the dark garage.I had been inside the garage before with my father. My surroundings were familiar. I heard the Coca-Cola machine motor humming even before I saw it. I walked directly to the big old red-and-white dispenser. I knew where to insert my dime. I had seen it done before and had fantasized about this moment many times.
the big old monster GREedily accepted my dime, and I heard the bottles shift. On tiptoes I reached up and opened the heavy door. There they were: one neat row of thick green bottles, necks staring directly at me, and ice cold from the refrigeration. I held the door open with my shoulder and grabbed one. With a quick yank, I pulled it free from its bondage. Another one immediately took its place. The bottle was cold in my sweaty hands. I will never forget the feeling of the cool glass on my skin. With two hands, I positioned the bottleneck under the heavy brass opener that was bolted to the wall. The cap dropped into an old wooden box, and I reached in to retrieve it. I was cold and bent in the middle, but I knew I needed to have this souvenir. Coke in hand, I proudly marched back out into the early evening dusk. Grampy was waiting patiently. He smiled.
我的心砰砰亂跳著走進昏暗的修車站。我以前曾和父親一塊來過這里，對周圍的一切都很熟悉。甚至在看見可口可樂機之前就聽到了其馬達發出的嗡嗡聲。我徑直走向那臺紅白相間的巨大的老自動售貨機。我知道該往哪兒插硬幣，我曾看人做過并曾多次幻想有一天我也能親身試一試。
那個老巨人貪婪地吞下我的硬幣，我聽見了瓶子移動的聲音。我踮起腳尖伸手摸索著打開了它厚重的門。它們就在那兒!一排整齊的深綠色瓶子，瓶頸一個挨一個地凝視著我，冰箱里散發出冰冷的氣息。我用肩膀頂著門，伸手抓住一個，迅速一拉，將它從捆綁中拉了出來，另一個立即占據了它的位置。瓶子在我汗浸浸的手中顯得格外冰涼，我永遠忘不了冰涼的瓶子接觸我皮膚時的感覺。我兩手抓住瓶子，將瓶頸放在固定的墻上的厚銅開瓶器下，瓶蓋立即掉在一個老木箱里，我伸手將它撿了出來，感覺好涼，中間已經彎曲，但我知道我需要擁有這個紀念品。手拿可樂，我自豪地走回到外面，已是黃昏時分。祖父正耐心地等待著，并面帶微笑。
" Stop right there," he yelled. One or two cars sped by me, and once again, Grampy stepped off the curb." Come on, now," he said, " run." I did. Cool brown foam sprayed my hands." Don’t ever do that alone," he warned.I held the Coke bottle tightly, fearful he would make me pour it into a cup, ruining this dream come true. He didn’t. One long swallow of the cold beverage cooled my sweating body. I don’t think I ever felt so proud.
"停在那兒，"一兩輛車在我面前飛駛而過，祖父再次走下馬路沿兒，"現在過來，"他說，"跑過來!"我跑了起來，冰涼的棕色泡沫濺在我的手上。"別再一個人獨自過馬路!"他警告我。我緊緊地抱著可樂瓶，生怕他讓我把可樂倒在杯子里，毀掉我的夢想。他沒有。我咕嚕嚕長長地吞下一口冰涼的可樂，冒汗的身體頓覺清爽無比。我認為自己再也沒有過當時那樣的自豪。By Jacqueline M. Hickey (袁紅梅 譯 自 Chicken Soup for the Woman’s Soul)
