读者文摘:妈妈,这个故事讲给你听(1)

There is a country-I read about it once-where the local custom is that

我曾经读过一篇文章，里面说有一个国家，当地的风俗是，

if you go to house and praise some small possession, the owners feel obliged to offer it to you as a gift.

如果你去到一幢房子那儿，对一些小财产夸奖一番，主人会觉得有义务把它作为礼物送给你。

I don't remember the name of the country; the only other place I know of with such a custom is my mother's apartment.

我不记得这个国家的名字了，我所知道的唯一有这种做法的地方是我母亲的公寓。

Knowing Mama, I have always been careful with my compliments, but that doesn't stop her.

我了解母亲，我总是很小心地恭维她，但这并不能阻止她。

Mama senses admiration¹ far more subtle than what's spoken.

妈妈感受到的赞美远比表达出来的微妙得多。

If she catches me staring at anything small enough to put in a grocery sack, she hands it to me as I leave.

如果她发现我盯着任何小到可以放进购物袋的东西，她会在我离开时递给我。

It would do no good to protest.

抗议没有好处。

"I was merely staring at that photograph of Mount Hood² because I have one exactly like it in my living room."

“我只是盯着胡德山的照片，因为我的客厅里有一张和它一模一样的照片。”

Mama would only nod and say, "Of course. You were thinking how nice it would be to have a set.

妈妈只会点头说：“当然。你在想要是有一套该多好。

If a mother doesn't understand, who does?"

如果母亲不明白，谁会明白？”

Sometimes, while visiting Mama and trying not to say anything complimentary³,

有时，我去看望母亲时，尽量不说任何赞美的话，

I reflect on what might have been had she ended up in, say, the White House.

我会想如果她最终入主白宫会发生什么。

"Here you are, Mr. Prime Minister, that nice picture of George Washington you were admiring so much, from the Blue Room.

“总理先生，这是你在蓝厅里欣赏的乔治·华盛顿的漂亮照片。

No, take it. You like it. What do I need it for?"

不，拿着，你会喜欢它的，我要用它做什么呢？”

Being with Mama is like watching an Alfred Hitchcock movie: I never know what's going to happen next.

和母亲在一起就像看希区柯克的电影：我永远不知道接下来会发生什么。

For instance, I have lasting⁴ memories of childhood walks with her.

例如，我一直记得童年和她一起散步，

Mama noticed everything. We had to stop to admire a nice house, a nice tree, a nice flower.

妈妈会注意到一切。我们会停下来欣赏漂亮的房子，挺拔的树，美丽的花。

Mama regarded the people we saw (those who didn't look like her relatives) as portraits in a museum—no matter if people stared back.

母亲把我们看到的人（那些长得不像她亲戚的人）当作博物馆里的肖像，不管那些人是否回头看。

"She was pretty once, but has seen tragedy," Mama would whisper, or, "Such a handsome man, but conceited⁵ to the core."

“她曾经很漂亮，但也遭遇过不幸，”妈妈会小声说，或者说，“这么英俊的男人，却自大到极点。”

Her sharpest epithet⁶ was "Minky," reserved for the type of woman Mama thought would wear a mink⁷ to the supermarket.

她起的苛刻的绰号“Minky”，留给那种母亲认为会穿着貂皮大衣去超市的女性。

1 admiration   

n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕

参考例句：

• He was lost in admiration of the beauty of the scene.他对风景之美赞不绝口。
• We have a great admiration for the gold medalists.我们对金牌获得者极为敬佩。

2 hood   

n.头巾，兜帽，覆盖；v.罩上，以头巾覆盖

参考例句：

• She is wearing a red cloak with a hood.她穿着一件红色带兜帽的披风。
• The car hood was dented in.汽车的发动机罩已凹了进去。

3 complimentary   

adj.赠送的，免费的，赞美的，恭维的

参考例句：

• She made some highly complimentary remarks about their school.她对他们的学校给予高度的评价。
• The supermarket operates a complimentary shuttle service.这家超市提供免费购物班车。

4 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

5 conceited   

adj.自负的，骄傲自满的

参考例句：

• He could not bear that they should be so conceited.他们这样自高自大他受不了。
• I'm not as conceited as so many people seem to think.我不像很多人认为的那么自负。

6 epithet   

n.（用于褒贬人物等的）表述形容词，修饰语

参考例句：

• In "Alfred the Great","the Great"is an epithet.“阿尔弗雷德大帝”中的“大帝”是个称号。
• It is an epithet that sums up my feelings.这是一个简洁地表达了我思想感情的形容词。

7 mink   

n.貂，貂皮

参考例句：

• She was wearing a blue dress and a mink coat.她穿着一身蓝色的套装和一件貂皮大衣。
• He started a mink ranch and made a fortune in five years. 他开了个水貂养殖场，五年之内就赚了不少钱。