【双语散文】礼物

【大纪元4月27日讯】1962年的夏天，我丈夫戴尔一直忙于一桩诉讼案，甚至连周末也不得不加班。共进晚餐、看电影都已成了往事。口袋中的钱紧巴巴的，就连以往互赠礼物也已不再列入预算，那太奢侈了。

My husband Dale had spent long hours at his law practice in the summer of 1962, even working on weekends on this particular case. There had been no time to go out to dinner or a movie. Money was tight. Gifts for each other simply were not part of the budget – they were a luxury.

　　戴尔在办公室那边忙得不可开交，我一个人既要看管三个幼小的孩子，打扫房屋、剪修花园，还得照顾一条布列塔尼小狗。T恤和弹力裤成了我的日常行头，我精心打造的优雅形象都已付诸东流。生活千篇一律，整天围着婴儿、尿布及成盒的纸巾转。多渴望有人告诉我，我仍然年轻美丽、悦人心意；多渴望丈夫能给我一点暗示：他依然欣赏我，并知道我需要他的一点点娇宠。而我所得到的，远远超出了我的白日梦！

While Dale worked hard at the office, I tended three young children, a house and garden and a Brittany pointer puppy. My daily uniform consisted of T-shirts and stretch pants, making my carefully nurtured image of glamour a thing of the past. Life seemed to center around baby formula, diapers and huge boxes of tissues. How I longed for a sign that I was still a desirable young woman. I hoped for an omen, any hint that my husband still found me desirable, a tiny assurance that he knew I needed a bit of pampering. I got much more than I had daydreamed!

　　那是一个周五的晚上，他回到家里，像往常一样若有所思地走进厨房，把一个皱巴巴的白纸卷儿扔在桌上：“喏，你的劳动所得！”这简直令我费解。什么话呀？他什么意思？更使我吃惊的是他所谓的劳动所得不过是又一卷纸巾！如果这是一个玩笑，我不明白它的幽默在哪里。

He came into the kitchen that Friday evening, his usual pre-occupied self, and tossed a crumpled, white tissue on the table and said, “Here! For services rendered!” His comment puzzled me. What an odd thing to say. What could he mean by that? Besides, I was shocked he would bring me nothing but a wadded-up tissue. If this was meant as a joke, I did not “get” it!

　　我正要将它扔进垃圾桶，戴尔从水池那端提醒道：“别扔，先打开看看。”我扑通一声坐在就近的椅子上，也顾不得身后孩子们的嘟囔，半信半疑，打开了纸卷儿。

　　老天！我瞪大眼睛，惊讶得说不出话来。一枚耀眼的戒指掉了出来！一枚白金钻戒，中间镶着方形的祖母绿。

　　我一句话也说不出，只是抬起头来，迷惑地看着我的挚爱，三个孩子的父亲。我流着眼泪试戴戒指。正合适！太不可思议了！好半天，我才语无伦次地问道：“怎么，为什么？哪来的钱买这么昂贵的宝石？”

I was about to throw the wadded tissue in the trash when Dale cautioned from the sink, “Don’t’ do that! You better look inside.” Disbelieving, I plopped into the nearest chair, ignored the whining children and unfolded the tissue. I stared! Speechless, I swallowed hard. A gorgeous ring fell out! a square emerald, framed in diamonds, all set in platinum. I tried to speak but could not. I looked uncomprehendingly at the love of my life, the father of my children. Then I cried and tried on the ring. It fit perfectly! I felt glamorous! Finally I was able to babble, “How? Why? Where did the money for this dazzling jewel come from?”

　　丈夫的笑容是那样温暖。他吸着冰苏打水说：“你应该得到它。”我还是不明白，以我们的收入水平绝买不起这样精致的礼物。接着，他解释道：“今天赢了官司。但客户却没钱付律师费，只好给了我这枚戒指，还说，‘劳动所得’。”怪不得他一开始就这么说呢。

　　一个珠宝商告诉我们，这些宝石并非赝品，他还查了专业目录，发现这种戒指是20世纪初法国巴黎制造的，一共只有四枚。

My husband smiled warmly as he sipped a chilled soda and said, “You deserve it!” I still could not understand why he would bring me such an elaborate gift, something the budget would not tolerate. Then he explained, “We won our court case today, but the client had no money to pay me. So, she handed me this ring and said, “For services rendered.” That finally explained his earlier comment.

　　我对这枚戒指珍爱有加，它让我过去42年的岁月变得精致优雅，也让我对往事越来越眷恋。如今，我丈夫已退休，周末自然不再有法律案子缠身了。我们彼此仍互送各式礼物，却再不用别致的包装纸或纸卷。然而，在彼此心中，它们依然珍贵，因为这些都是心之馈赠。

A jeweler assured us the stones are genuine and, checking a specialty catalogue, he told us that the ring was one of only four, made in Paris, France, at the turn of the century. This much-treasured ring has made me feel elegant during the past 42 years, and somewhat nostalgic of late. My husband, now retired from the practice of law, no longer has to spend long weekends doing legal work. Our gifts to each other these days are tokens of a different sort, none of them wrapped in fancy paper or wadded-up tissues, but nonetheless precious, because they are gifts of the heart. @(http://www.dajiyuan.com)