■天鹅的爱情
Swans Mate for Life
◎Hal Torrance/哈尔·托伦斯
The end of my sophomore year was approaching. Mom called me at the dorm one muggy[2] evening during the last week of May. My summer break would be spent with Grandma and Grandpa, helping out around their farm. The arrangement made good sense to all the family. I wasn’t fully convinced of that myself but figured it was just one summer. Next year would be my little brother’s turn.
I packed my car after my last exam and said my good-byes until the fall. My friends would keep until then. Most of them were going home for the summer anyway.
The farm was about a three-hour drive from school. My grandparents were both in their seventies, and I knew they really needed the help around the farm. Getting in the hay would be something Grandpa couldn’t do by himself. He also needed help with repairs to the barns and a host of other chores.
I arrived late that afternoon. Grandma had fixed more food than the three
美丽语录
我大学的第二个学年即将结束。5月最后一个礼拜，一个闷热的夜晚，母亲打电话到宿舍告诉我说，今年夏天我将要和爷爷奶奶共度暑假，去他们的农场上帮忙。这个安排对全家人都有好处，我却并不十分信服，不过转念一想，也只是一个暑假罢了。明年就该轮到我弟弟了。
最后一场考试结束后，我就已经整理好行装放进车里，并与我的朋友们告别，相约秋天再见。他们大多数人都会回家过暑假。
农场离学校有3个小时的车程。我的爷爷奶奶都是年届七旬的老人，他们的确需要帮手来帮忙打理农场。爷爷独自一人没法收割干草，而且他也需要有人帮忙修理谷仓，做其他的一些杂务。
那天下午晚些时候，我到达了农场。奶奶准备了很多食物，我们三
of us could possibly eat. She doted[3] over me entirely too much. I figured all the attention would taper off once she got used to having me around, but it didn’t. Grandpa wanted to bring me up to date on literally everything. By the time I settled in for bed that night, I’d decided things would be okay. After all, it was just for one summer.
The next morning, Grandpa fixed breakfast for the two of us. He told me Grandma had tired herself out yesterday and was going to rest in bed a little longer. I made a mental note to myself to not ask her to do things for me while I was there. I was there to help, not be a burden.
Grandpa surprised me that morning. Once we were out of the house, he seemed more in his own element. The farm was his domain. Despite his age, there was confidence in the way he moved about the place. He didn’t seem like the same person who had fallen asleep last night on the couch before the six o’clock news was finished. As we walked the pastures getting a close-up look at the livestock, Grandpa seemed to know each cow. And there were nearly two hundred of them!
We didn’t do much real work that first day, but I gained a sense of appreciation for what Grandpa had done all those years before I was even born. He wasn’t an educated man, but he had raised and provided for four children on this farm. I was impressed by that.
Weeks passed. By June we had already baled one cutting of hay and gotten it safely into the barn. I gradually settled into a routine of daily work with Grandpa. He had a mental schedule of things that needed doing, and we worked on part of it each day. In the evenings I usually read or talked with Grandma. She never grew tired of hearing about college or anything I was involved in. She told me stories about her childhood, family and the early
个人根本都吃不完。她太宠爱我了，我原以为一旦她习惯了我在身边，对我的关注就会慢慢消退，但是，后来的事实证明并非如此。爷爷几乎做得面面俱到，他想让我熟悉每一件事情。到晚上上床睡觉的时候，我告诉自己：没关系，一切都会好的。毕竟，我只待一个暑假而已。
第二天一早，爷爷为我们俩做好了早餐。他告诉我说奶奶昨天太累，要在床上多休息一会儿。我在心里暗暗记下：以后不要让奶奶为我做事，毕竟我是来这里帮忙的，我可不想成为他们的负担。
那天早晨，爷爷着实让人大吃一惊。我们一走出房子，爷爷似乎就立刻变得轻松自在起来。这座农场就是他的领地，尽管他年事已高，但他在这里四处走动的时候，总是显得自信满满，自得其乐。与昨晚6点新闻结束之前就在沙发上呼呼大睡的爷爷相比，现在的他似乎摇身一变，成了一个截然不同的人。我们走到草场上仔细查看牲畜，而爷爷似乎认识每一头牛，那里竟然有近200头牛！
第一天，我们没干什么实质性的活儿，但对于爷爷从我出生前以来这些年一直从事的事情，我不禁从心底油然而生一股欣赏钦佩之情。他没受过什么教育，也没多少文化，但他在这个农场上将四个子女抚养成人。我被深深地感动了。
一转眼，几个星期过去了。到6月的时候，我们已经将干草收割打捆，并顺利地送入谷仓。我逐渐适应了和爷爷一起完成每天的例行工作。对于需要做的事情，他脑子里列了一个时间表，每天我们都会各自完成这些工作。晚上，我时常和奶奶一块儿聊天或看书。她从来不会厌倦谈论我的大学生活以及与我有关的一切；而她也对我回忆起她的童年，她
years after she and Grandpa had married.
The last Saturday in June, Grandpa suggested we go fishing, since we were caught up on everything. The pond was in a low pasture near the woods. Years before, Grandpa had stocked it with fish. We drove the pickup to the pond that day, looking over the livestock as we went. We hadn’t expected what we saw when we got to the pond that morning: One of the swans was dead. Grandpa had given the pair of swans to Grandma on their fiftieth anniversary.
“Why don’t we see about buying another one,” I suggested, hoping the situation could somehow be righted. Grandpa thought for a few moments before answering. He finally said, “No ... It’s not that easy, Bruce. You see, swans mate for life.” He raised his finger to point, holding the fishing pole in his other hand.“There’s nothing we can do for the one that’s left. He has to work it out for himself.”
We caught enough fish that morning for lunch. On the way back to the house, Grandpa asked me not to tell Grandma about the swan. She didn’t get down to the pond much anymore, and there was no sense in her knowing about it right away.
A few days later, we drove by the pond while doing our morning check on the cows. We found the other swan lying near the same spot we had found the first one. It, too, was dead.
The month of July started with me and Grandpa putting up a new stretch of fence. Then July 12 came. That was the day Grandma passed away. I’d overslept that morning. Grandpa had not knocked on my door, either. It was nearly eight o’clock by the time I could hurriedly dress myself and get down to the kitchen. I saw Dr. Morgan sitting at the kitchen table. He was a neighbor my grandparents’ age, long since retired. He’d come to the house several
的家人，以及她和爷爷刚结婚那几年的往事。
6月的最后一个星期六，爷爷提议我们去钓鱼，因为我们已经干完了所有当时能做的农活。池塘位于树林附近的一片低矮的草场中，几年前，爷爷在池塘里放养了很多鱼。那天，我们开着皮卡车去池塘边，途中还去查看了一下牲畜。当我们到达池塘的时候，看到了未曾预料到的意外一幕：一对天鹅中的一只死掉了。那对天鹅可是爷爷在结婚50周年纪念日送给奶奶的礼物。
“为什么我们不再买一只天鹅呢？”我提了个建议，想缓和一下当时的气氛。爷爷陷入了沉思，久久不回答我的问题。最后，他说道：“不……没那么简单，孩子。天鹅一生只有一个伴侣。”他举起一根手指，另一只手上握着钓鱼竿。“我们不能为剩下的那只天鹅做什么，它要靠自己度过这个难关。”
那天上午，我们很快便钓到很多鱼，足够午饭时美餐一顿了。在回家的路上，爷爷嘱咐我不要对奶奶提起天鹅的事。她现在很少去塘边，而且让她知道这件事也没有任何意义。
几天后的一个早晨，我们和往常一样开车去检查牲畜。路过池塘时，在那只天鹅死去的同一地点，我们发现那儿躺着另一只天鹅，它也已经死去。
7月初，我和爷爷开始建造一段新的围栏。然后，就到了7月12日——奶奶去世的那一天。那天早晨，我睡过头了，爷爷也没有来敲门。等我急匆匆穿好衣服，走下楼梯进入厨房的时候，都快到8点了。我看见摩根医生坐在餐桌边。他和我的爷爷奶奶年纪相仿，是他们的邻居，已经退休很多年了，以前也曾应邀来过好几次。我立刻发觉有什么事情
times before on social calls. I immediately knew something was wrong. This morning, his tattered old black bag was by his feet, and my grandfather was obviously shaken.
Grandma had died suddenly that morning of a stroke[4]. By the afternoon, my parents were there. The old house was soon crowded with relatives and Grandpa’s friends.
The funeral was held the next day. Grandpa had insisted on having it as soon as possible. On the second day after the funeral, Grandpa announced at the breakfast table, “This is a working farm. We have a lot of things to do. The rest of you should get back to your own lives.” Most of the family had already left, but this was Grandpa’s way of telling the rest it was time for them to go home. My parents were the last to leave after lunch.
Grandpa was not a man who could outwardly express his grief around others, and we all worried about him. There had been talk of his giving up the farm. My parents thought he was too old to live out there alone. He wouldn’t hear of it, though. I was proud of the way the old man had stood his ground.
The rest of the summer flowed by. We stayed busy working. I thought there was something different about Grandpa but couldn’t quite put my finger on it. I started to wonder if he would be better off living with someone after all, but I knew he could not leave the farm.
September was nearing, and part of me did not want to leave. I thought of skipping the fall semester and staying around a few more months. When I mentioned it, Grandpa quickly told me that my place was back at college.
The day finally came for me to pack my car and leave. I shook his hand and chanced a hug. As I drove down the driveway, I saw him in the rearview mirror. He waved to me and then walked to the pasture gate to start the
发生了。这天早上，他那破旧的黑包就扔在脚边，而爷爷明显有些摇晃，似乎站立不稳。
那天早晨，奶奶因为中风突然去世。到下午的时候，我父母也赶到了。这座老房子里很快挤满了亲戚和爷爷的朋友。
因为爷爷坚持让奶奶尽早入土为安，所以葬礼就在第二天举行。葬礼过后的第二天，爷爷在早餐时向大家宣布：“这个农场还需要正常运作，我们有很多事情要做。其余的人都回到你们自己的生活中去吧。”大多数家人已经离开，但是爷爷要以自己的方式告诉留下的人，是时候该回去了。我父母是最迟离开的，那天午饭后他们也走了。
爷爷不是一个会在人前表达悲痛的人，我们都为他感到担忧。于是，有人提出让他放弃继续在农场生活。我父母也觉得他年纪太大，不适合独自在那里生活。但他并不听从他们的建议。老人以自己的方式坚守着自己的立场，我为他感到骄傲。
剩下的日子飞一般地过去。我们总是忙着干活。我觉察到爷爷有些变化，但我又不能明确说出有什么不同来。我开始想，如果他能和谁一起住，是否会对他更好一些。但是，我清楚地知道，他不能离开农场。
9月渐渐临近，我有些不愿意离去。我甚至想过秋天的那个学期不去上学，而在农场上多待几个月时间。当我跟爷爷说起我的想法时，他毅然告诉我说，学校才是我该去的地方。
离开的那一天最终还是来临了，我不得不打点行装，回到学校去。我握了握他的手，同他拥抱了一下。我一边驾车沿着公路向前开去，一边在后视镜里看着他。他冲我挥挥手，然后走向草场门口，开始每天早
morning livestock check. that’s how I like to remember him.
Mom called me at school on a blustery[5] October day to tell me Grandpa had died. A neighbor had stopped by that morning for coffee and found him in the kitchen. He died of a stroke, same as Grandma. At that moment, I understood what he’d clumsily tried to explain to me about the swan on that morning we fished together by the pond.
晨检查牲口的工作。我喜欢以这种方式来记住他。
10月的一天，寒风凛冽，妈妈打电话来学校告诉我，爷爷去世了。他的一个邻居早上过去喝咖啡时，在厨房里发现了他。他和奶奶一样死于中风。就在那时，我忽然明白，我们一起在池塘边钓鱼的那个早晨，他为什么笨拙地试图向我解释天鹅的故事。