Picture of an Angel 天使的照片
Picture of an Angel 天使的照片
◎ Algernon
Golden sunlight danced in the treetops, and children’s laughter filled the park. The smell of popcorn played on the breeze, and life seemed good. It was one of the happiest Saturday mornings I had spent with my little daughter, Gigi.
金色的陽光在樹梢舞動(dòng)，孩子們的笑聲洋溢在公園的各個(gè)角落。爆米花的香味在微風(fēng)中飄蕩，生活是如此的美好。這是我和小女兒小吉一起度過的一個(gè)最幸福的周六上午之一。
That is, until two strangers threw her into their car and sped away. It seemed like a bad dream. I could barely whisper when the police questioned me. For hours we waited, but there was no word on the whereabouts of the car. Tears would start to come. Then nothing. I was numb with fear.
然而，當(dāng)兩個(gè)陌生人把她塞進(jìn)車?yán)锊⒓柴Y而去之后，一切美好都被打破了。這個(gè)經(jīng)歷像是一場(chǎng)噩夢(mèng)。警察詢問我時(shí)，我?guī)缀跽f不出話來。我們等了很久，但還是沒有關(guān)于那輛車的行蹤的消息。我欲哭無淚，整個(gè)人驚恐而麻木。
“Go home, Ma’am,” the sergeant said. “I’ll have an officer drive you. We’ll also want to monitor your telephone. The kidnappers might call, and we’ll want to get a trace. Trust me, these guys can’t get far.” After what had just happened, it was hard for me to trust anything.
“女士，回家吧。”警察說，“我會(huì)讓人開車送你回去的。我們想監(jiān)聽你的電話。綁匪可能會(huì)給你打電話，我們想進(jìn)行追蹤。相信我，這些人跑不遠(yuǎn)的。”然而，在經(jīng)歷過所發(fā)生的一切后，我?guī)缀鯚o法相信任何事情。
My friend Gloria came over that afternoon. “I heard about Gigi on the radio,” she said. “Everyone is looking for the car. The interstates are all blocked.” She took my hand.
我的朋友格勞雷亞當(dāng)天下午過來看我。“我從收音機(jī)上聽說了關(guān)于小吉的事情，”她說，“每個(gè)人都在找那輛車。所有洲際公路都被封鎖了。”她握住了我的手。
“Look here,” Gloria said. “I want you have this picture, and I want you to pray with me.”
“你看這兒，”格勞雷亞說，“我想把這張圖片給你，希望你和我一起祈禱。”
It was a picture of a little girl sound asleep in her bed. Standing by the bed was a tall, blond angel. His hand was touching the girl’s shoulder as he smiled down at her.
這是一張一個(gè)小女孩在床上熟睡的照片。床邊站著一個(gè)金發(fā)碧眼、身材高挑的天使。天使正朝著女孩微笑，手放在她的肩膀上。
My nerves were frazzled. “You know I don’t believe in that kind of thing!” I snapped. “I’m too exhausted for any hocus-pocus right now, Gloria! I want my daughter home!” I started to shake, and then I began sobbing.
我的神經(jīng)一下子就崩潰了。“你知道我不相信這類東西的！”我厲聲說道。“格勞雷亞，我現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)精疲力竭了，受不了任何戲弄！我想要我的女兒回家！”我開始發(fā)抖，之后便開始抽泣。
Gloria placed the photo on our mantle and knelt down beside me. “Just pray with me.” she said, holding my hand.
格勞雷亞把圖片放在我們的披風(fēng)上，在我旁邊跪下來。“和我一起祈禱吧。”她握住我的手說。
I had no strength left, so we prayed and waited what seemed an eternity. Together, we waited by the phone until sundown. The phone never rang.
我已經(jīng)沒有力氣掙脫了，于是我們一起祈禱，但是，等待的時(shí)間如此漫長(zhǎng)。我們一起在電話旁等到太陽落山。但它始終都沒有響。
Suddenly, the front door swung open. I looked up and screamed.
突然，前門被推開了。我抬起頭看了看，便尖叫起來。
There stood Gigi. “Gigi! Thank God!” I cried, throwing my arms around her. “Where did those men take you? How did you get home? Did the police find you?”
是小吉站在門口。“小吉！謝天謝地！”我喊出聲來，跑過去抱住她。“那些人帶你去哪里了？你怎么回家的？警察找到你了嗎？”
“No Mommy!” said Gigi. “I was real scared because those men said they were taking me far away. We were going real fast on an old rock road I’d never seen before. But then a tall man walked out in front of the car, and they ran off the road and hit a tree. Then the tall man ran up and opened the car door and pulled me out. He was real nice, and said I would be okay now, and that those men couldn’t hurt me. I must have gone to sleep, because then I woke up here in front of our house. He must have brought me home.”
“媽媽，不是那樣的！”小吉說。“那些人說要把我?guī)У胶苓h(yuǎn)的地方，我害怕極了。他們?cè)谝粭l我從未見過的碎石路上開得飛快。但之后有一個(gè)高個(gè)子的人走到車前，他們的車就偏離了公路，撞到了一棵樹上。然后那個(gè)高個(gè)子的人跑了過來，打開車門把我拉了出來。他人非常好，告訴我說現(xiàn)在沒事了，那些人不會(huì)再傷害我了。我想我當(dāng)時(shí)一定是睡著了，因?yàn)槲倚褋頃r(shí)就已經(jīng)在家門前了。一定是他把我?guī)Щ亓思摇?rdquo;
“But who...how did he know...where to bring you?” My voice broke and trailed to a whisper.
“但是……他怎么知道……要把你帶到哪里？”我的嗓子啞了，只能小聲說話。
“I don’t know, Mommy,” Gigi said. “But he was real friendly, and I wasn’t scared of him at all.”
“媽媽，我也不知道，”小吉說，“但他確實(shí)非常友好，我一點(diǎn)兒都不怕他。”
Just then Gigi noticed Gloria’s picture on the mantle. “That’s him!” She squealed, pointing at the picture. “Mommy, the tall blond man dressed like an angel. That’s the man that pulled me out of the car!”
就在那個(gè)時(shí)候，小吉看到了格勞雷亞放在披風(fēng)上的圖片。“那就是他！”她手指著那張圖片尖聲叫道。“媽媽，那個(gè)金發(fā)碧眼的高個(gè)子的人穿的衣服就像這個(gè)天使一樣，就是他把我從車?yán)锢鰜淼模?rdquo;
I felt chill-bumps across my neck and arms. Gloria turned pale. “Are you sure that’s the man?” Gloria asked.
我感到脖子和胳膊上都泛起了雞皮疙瘩。格勞雷亞臉色也變得蒼白。“你確定就是這個(gè)人？”格勞雷亞問她。
“Yeah, that’s him okay. Except he didn’t have wings, and he was wearing blue jeans and a tee shirt. But that’s him exactly. I’d remember him anywhere!”
“對(duì)，就是他。但他沒有翅膀，他穿的藍(lán)色牛仔褲和一件T恤。但絕對(duì)是他。到哪里我都能記得他！”
Later that night, the police found the injured kidnappers in their wrecked car fifty miles from our home. When questioned, the driver remembered swerving to avoid hitting a tall blond man. The backseat door that Gigi sat by had been completely torn off its hinges.
那天夜里，警察在距離我家50英里外的地方找到了受傷的綁匪，他們的車已經(jīng)撞壞了。被審問時(shí)，司機(jī)記得當(dāng)時(shí)是為了躲開一個(gè)高個(gè)子金發(fā)碧眼的人才把車突然轉(zhuǎn)向。小吉所坐的后座的門已經(jīng)完全被從合頁上摘了下來。
Twenty years have gone by. We have never heard from anyone claiming to have rescued Gigi. There have been no logical explanations for Gigi’s miraculous escape and return home from a wreck so far away.
20年過去了。我們從未聽說有人宣稱救過小吉，也沒有任何合理的解釋能夠?qū)π〖孥E般的逃脫和從如此遠(yuǎn)的車禍中回家作出說明。
There have always been things that people can’t explain. But, from that day forward, I’ve never doubted that many of those things are divine miracles. I believe that all experiences, positive and negative, are given to us for our strengthening and learning.
總有一些人們無法作出解釋的事情。但是，從那天起，我不再懷疑許多事都是神圣的奇跡了。我相信所有的經(jīng)歷，好的也罷，壞的也罷，都給了我們力量和教導(dǎo)。
Gigi now takes her little girl to the park on Saturdays. They enjoy the sunlight as it dances in the treetops, the smell of popcorn, and the laughter of children. She keeps Gloria’s picture on her mantle, and she remembers her angelic friend. And, like my daughter, I have a faith that has carried me through many trials since that day many years ago.
小吉現(xiàn)在也會(huì)在周六帶著自己的小女兒去公園。她們盡情地享受在樹梢舞動(dòng)的陽光，爆米花的香味，孩子們的笑聲。她把格勞雷亞的圖片放在自己的披風(fēng)里，她思念自己的天使朋友。像我的女兒一樣，從多年之前的那天起我也懷有一種信仰，這種信仰幫我克服了許多困難。
