I live in the mountains of West Virginia. 我住在弗吉尼亚西部的山区 The curvy, winding roads 山路蜿蜒曲折 and the vast woodlands 山林广袤 often lead to near misses with the local deer. 车辆长长与山中冲出来的鹿擦肩而过 The other day 有一天 I was driving my son 我开车带着儿子 to work at the sheltered workshop 送他去工坊干活 when we saw a deer in the road 我们在公路上看到一只鹿 that hadn’t been so lucky. 已经没了生机 The driver in front of me 开在前面的车的司机 suddenly swerved 突然转向 to avoid hitting the corpse 避免撞到鹿的尸体 and I quickly followed him 我很快做出同样的操作 jerking the steering wheel 猛地一转方向盘 to get back in the right lane 想要回到右边的车道 before the next blind curve. 赶在下一个视野不佳的弯道出现之前 I could see that 我能看到 the way the dead deer was lying between two blind curves 死掉的鹿正躺在两个视野不佳的弯道中间 we had an accident waiting to happen. 我们很可能在那里遇到车祸 After dropping my son off 我把儿子送到目的地之后 I hurried back 我赶紧掉头开回来 and saw the deer was still in the road. 发现那头死鹿还呆在路上 There was a wide spot 我发现一处宽敞的空地 on the side of the road. 就在路边 I pulled over. 我停下车 I got out of my car 我下了车 and walked up to where the deer was. 步行走到死鹿躺着的地方 Looking both ways for cars 向两边看了一下是否有车辆来去 I ran over to the body. 接着就跑到鹿的尸体旁边 It was laying in a pool of blood and excrement. 它躺在血泊中间,血泊中还有许多污秽 I reached down 我躬身 and grabbed its broken hind leg. 抓住了它已经折断的后腿 I backed up quickly 我很快往后退 dragging it behind me 后面拖着那头鹿 to the side of the road. 来到了路边 I looked down at the majestic animal 我低头看着这体型庞大的动物 as I wiped off my hands in the wet snow by the guardrail . 在护栏边湿漉漉的积雪中擦干净手上的血迹 “So sorry my friend,” “真对不起,伙伴” I said to him. 我对那头鹿说 I sadly walked back to my car 我怀着悲伤走回自己的车 knowing that 知道 the crows, buzzards, and other scavengers 乌鸦,秃鹫,还有其他的食腐动物 would soon take care of the remains. 很快就会把它的遗骸处理干净 I was still thinking of that beautiful deer 我一直想着那只原本美丽的鹿 later in the day 那天晚些时候 when I turned on my computer. 我打开自己的电脑 As it came on 屏幕亮时 I smiled with surprise and delight. 我吃了一惊,欣喜微笑了 I had forgotten what 我已然忘了 my most recent screen saver was: 自己最近设置的屏图片 a picture of a deer 是一只鹿 in a field of wild flowers 它站在一丛野花中 staring at the sunrise. 抬头看着日出 I wondered if 我心想 that deer’s spirit 或许那头鹿 was in a heavenly meadow right now 此刻已经在某个仙境的草地上 perhaps romping 或许它正在嬉戏 and playing with some of my own furry friends 抑或正在与许多我的毛茸茸的朋友们玩耍 who had passed. 它们都已离我而去 I wondered too 我还在想 about the time I had left here. 自己在这个世间还有多少时间 Would it be days, months, or many years? 是几天,几个月,还是许多年? I shook my head, 我摇摇头 laughed and decided that 笑着笃信道 it didn’t matter 这无关紧要 just as long as 只要 I lived the time 在余下的光阴里 I had left with love, kindness, and joy. 我都怀着爱意,善良和喜悦过下去 May you do the same. 希望你也是如此 |