A real doctor
Agony is a remote mountain village which is far from town and far from civilization. The villagers own their own farms and open their own factories. Life here is generally quiet and peaceful.
But life also means a lot of inconveniences in this part of the world. For example, if someone is ill, it is difficult to get a doctor nearby. Some young people have been sent to study medicine in town, only once they are out of the village, few of them are willing to return to work here.
Old Joe and his wife live in a cottage at the end of their farm. They have a large flock of sheep and quite a few horses. The couple take their animals as their family members and spend most of their time looking after them.
One night, Old Joe was woken up by a piercing1) cry. He immediately realized that his sheep were being attacked by a pack of wolves. He jumped out of bed, took his gun and rushed out. In the dark, he saw a figure moving towards the sheep pen. He raised his gun and shot at it;the figure fell with a painful groan2). But somehow the voice sounded like his wife’s. He hurried to the figure, only to find his wife lying bleeding on the ground. She was seriously wounded.
Seeing what had happened, Old Joe couldn’t believe his eyes. He tore a piece of his shirt and wrapped up the wound for his wife with his shaking hands. He then gently carried her into the room and put her on the bed. He rushed out again and jumped onto a horse. He rode fiercely 3)down to the village where he hoped he could find help. A moment later he returned with a young man who was the son of a friend and how was a medical student on holiday.
Encouraged by Old Joe, the young man examined the wound and decided that surgery should be done immediately to get the bullet out. But when he saw the blood issuing4) from the wound, the young man’s hands began to shake violently and it was difficult for him to calm down. An immediate operation seemed impossible and Old Joe’s wife was in danger.
At this moment, they heard the sound of heavy and hurried foot steps outside and then in burst a middle-aged man dressed like a traveller. The new comer had a quick glance at the wounded and then said: “I can do it.” He took the instruments5) from the young man and made a sign to them to leave the room for a while.
Half an hour later, the middle-aged man came out and told Old Joe that the bullet had been taken out and everything would be all right. Old Joe was so grateful that he kept saying: “You’re a real doctor. You’ve saved my wife. You’re a real doctor.”
“No, I‘m a vet, only an animal doctor. ”The man smiled. “I’ve been making a survey for my article on animal raising environment in mountainous areas. It happened that I had just arrived at the village when you went to fetch this young man and I followed you here just in case you needed help. ”
一位真正的醫(yī)生
阿戈尼是一個偏僻的山村, 遠離城市, 遠離文明。這里的村民擁有自己的農場, 開辦自己的工廠。生活在這里基本上是平靜而祥和的。
然而, 在世界的這塊地方生活又意味著諸多的不便。譬如說, 如果有誰病了, 那么要在附近找到一位醫(yī)生是非常困難的。一些年輕人曾被送到城里去學醫(yī), 可是這些年輕人一旦走出了村莊, 就沒有幾個會愿意再回到這里來工作。
老喬和妻子住在自己農場盡頭的農舍里。他們有一大群羊和好幾匹馬。夫妻倆把這些牲口當作是家里的成員, 把大部分時間都用來照料它們。
一天夜里, 老喬被一聲尖叫驚醒。他立刻意識到他的羊正遭受狼群的襲擊。他跳下床, 拿起槍就沖了出去。黑暗中他看見一個影子正朝羊圈方向移動。他舉起槍, 瞄準黑影開了一槍。黑影痛苦地呻吟著倒下去??赡巧胍髀晠s像是他妻子發(fā)出的。他趕緊朝黑影奔去, 只見妻子流著血躺在地上。她傷得很重。
看到眼前發(fā)生的事, 老喬不敢相信自己的眼睛。他從自己的襯衣上撕下一塊布, 用顫抖的雙手替妻子把傷口包扎起來。然后輕輕地將她抱進屋里, 放到床上。接著, 他再一次沖出門外, 跳上一匹馬。他拼命騎著馬向村里跑去, 希望能在那里找到能幫忙的人。他一會兒功夫就回來了, 和他一起來的年輕人是一位朋友的兒子, 他在度假, 是醫(yī)學院的學生。
在老喬的鼓勵下, 年輕人檢查了傷口, 并果斷地說需要立即施行手術將子彈取出??墒钱斔吹綇膫诹鞒龅难獣r, 年輕人的手抖得很厲害, 他一時很難平靜下來??磥砹⒓醋鍪中g已是不可能了, 老喬的妻子危在旦夕。
就在這時, 他們聽到外面一陣沉重而又急促的腳步聲, 隨后闖進來一位旅行者裝束的中年男子。來人很快地掃了一眼受傷者, 然后說:“我能做這個手術。”他從年輕人手中接過了手術器械, 并示意讓他們離開一會兒。
半小時后, 中年人出來了, 他對老喬說子彈已經(jīng)取出, 沒事了。老喬感激萬分, 連聲說道:“你是個真正的醫(yī)生。你救了我妻子的命。你是個真正的醫(yī)生。”
“不, 我是個獸醫(yī), 只給牲口看病。”中年人笑著說。“我在為我的文章《論山區(qū)牲畜的飼養(yǎng)環(huán)境》作調查。當你去村里請這位年輕人時我正好剛剛到達那里。于是我就跟蹤而來, 萬一你們需要幫助時我可以出點力。”
NOTE 注釋:
piercing [5piEsiN] adj. 刺耳的
groan [^rEun] n. 呻吟, 嘆息
fiercely [`fIEslI] adv. 猛烈地, 厲害地
issue [5isju:] vi. (血)流出
instrument [5instrumEnt] n. 工具
mountainous [5mauntinEs] adj. 多山的