"But what if I break my arm again?" My five-year-old daughter asked, her lower lip trembling. I knelt holding onto her bike and looked her right in the eyes. I knew how much she wanted to learn to ride and how often she felt left out when her friends pedaled by our house. Yet ever since she'd fallen off her bike and broken her arm, she'd been afraid.
"但如果我又把胳膊摔断了怎么办?"我5岁的女儿问我,双唇颤抖着.我跪着抓紧她的自行车,直视着她的眼睛.我很清楚她有多想学会骑车.多少次她的朋友们骑着车经过我们家时,她都感到自己受到了冷落.可自从上次她从自行车上摔下来,摔断了胳膊,她就害怕骑车了.
"Oh honey," I said. "I don't think you'll break another arm."
"噢,亲爱的."我说,"我相信你不会把另一只胳膊给摔断的."
"But I could, couldn't I?"
"但是有可能会,不是吗?"
"Yes," I admitted, and found myself struggling for the right thing to say. At times like this, I wished I had a partner to turn to. Someone who might help find the right words to make my little girl's problems disappear. But after a disastrous marriage and a painful divorce, I'd welcomed the hardships of being a single parent and had been adamant in telling anyone who tried to fix me up that I was terminally single.
"是的,"我承认道,此时我真的不知道自己怎么说才好.每逢遇到这种情况,我都很希望有个人能来帮我,帮我找到合适的话语来帮小女儿解决难题.可是经过一场不幸的婚姻和痛苦的离婚之后,我宁愿当个单身母亲,再苦都无所谓,并且我还态度坚决地告诉每个要给我介绍对象的人,说我决定单身下去.
"I don't think I want to ride," she said and got off her bike.
"我觉得我不想再骑车了."她说着便下了自行车.
We walked away and sat down beside a tree.
我们走到一棵树旁坐下来.
"Don't you want to ride with your friends?" I asked.
"难道你不想和你的朋友们一起骑车吗?"我问道.
"And I thought you were hoping to start riding your bike to school next year." I added.
"而且我原以为你希望明年可以自己骑着车去上学呢."我补充到.
"I was," she said, her voice almost a quiver.
"我确实希望能这样."她声音有点颤.
"You know, honey," I said. "Most everything you do comes with risks. You could get a broken arm in a car wreck and then be afraid to ever ride in a car again. You could break your arm jumping rope. You could break your arm at gymnastics. Do you want to stop going to gymnastics?"
"知道吗,宝贝."我说,"很多要做的事情都是有风险的.汽车失事也会折断胳膊,那你会为此而一坐车就害怕吗?跳绳、做体操都有可能折断胳膊,你就想不跳绳、不练体操了吗?"
"No," she said. And with a determined spirit, she stood up and agreed to try again. I held on to the back of her bike until she found the courage to say, "Let's go!"
"不!"她说.然后她毅然地站起,同意再试试.我扶着车尾,直到她鼓起勇气说："出发吧!"
I spent the rest of the afternoon at the park watching a very brave little girl overcome a fear, and congratulating myself for being a self-sufficient single parent.
这一个下午,我都在公园里看着一个非常勇敢的小女孩克服恐惧,我祝贺自己成了可以依靠自己的单身家长.
As we walked home, pushing the bike as we made our way along the sidewalk, she asked me about a conversation she'd overheard me having with my mother the night before.
我们推着自行车顺着人行道往家走时,她问起昨天晚上无意中听到的我和我妈妈的谈话.
"Why were you and grandma arguing last night?"
"昨天晚上您为什么和姥姥争吵?"
My mother was one of the many people who constantly tried to fix me up. How many times had I told her "no" to meeting the Mr. Perfect she picked out for me. She just knew Steve was the man for me.
总有很多人想安排我去相亲,而我妈妈就是这众多人中的一个.我多次拒绝她为我选的白马王子.她总觉得史蒂文适合我.
"It's nothing," I told her.
"没什么事."我告诉她.
She shrugged. "Grandma said she just wanted you to find someone to love."
她耸耸肩,"姥姥说她只不过想让你找个人来爱."
"What grandma wants is for some guy to break my heart again," I snapped, angry that my mother had said anything about this to my daughter.
"姥姥想要的就是找个人再次伤我的心."我厉声说道,因为妈妈跟我的女儿说这样的事而生气.
"But Mom."
"可妈妈."
"You're too young to understand." I told her.
"你太小了,不会懂的."我对她说.
She was quiet for the next few minutes. Then she looked up and in a small voice gave me something to think about.
接下来好几分钟她都很安静.然后她抬起头来,小声地说了句令我深思的话.
"So I guess love isn't like a broken arm."
"那么我猜爱情和断胳膊就不是一回事了."
We walked the rest of the way in silence. I let go and agreed to meet Steve.
我默默地走完了剩下的路.我最终妥协了,同意去见史蒂文.
Steve was the man for me. We married less than a year later. It turned out mother and my daughter were right.
事实证明,史蒂文正是我的那位白马王子,不到一年我们便结了婚.结果证明,妈妈和女儿的话是对的.
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