AMERICAN STORIES - All the Years of Her Life

AMERICAN STORIES - All the Years of Her Life
By Morley Callaghan

Broadcast: Saturday, November 20, 2004

Our the Special English program -- American Stories

Our story today is called "All the years of her life". It was written by Morley Callaghan. Here is Shep O'Neal to tell you the story.

The drug store was beginning to close for the night. Young Alfred Higgins who worked in the store was putting on his coat getting ready to go home. On his way out, he passed Mr. Sam Carl, the little grey-hair man who owned the store. Mr. Carl looked up at Alfred's back as he passed, and said in a very soft voice,

"Just a moment, Alfred, one moment before you go."

Mr. Carl spoke¹ so quietly that it worried Alfred.

"What is it? Mr. Carl."

"Maybe you will be good enough to take a few things out of your pockets and leave them here before you go." said Mr. Carl.

"What things? What are you talking about?"

"You've got a compact² and a lipstick³ and a list two-two of toothpaste in your pockets, Alfred."

"What do you mean?" Alfred answered, "Do you think I'm crazy?" his face got red.

Mr. Carl kept looking at Alfred coldly. Alfred did not know what to say and tried to keep his eyes from meeting the eyes of his boss.

After a few moments he put his hand into his pockets and took out the things he had stolen.

"That is things, Alfred." said Mr. Carl, "and maybe you will be good enough to tell me how long this has been going on."

"This is the first time that I ever took anything."

Mr. Carl was quick to answer, "So now you think you tell me a lie? What kind of food do I look like? I don't know what goes on in my own store. I tell you, you've been doing this for a long time."

Mr. Carl had a strange smile on his face.

"I don't like to call the police," he said, "but maybe I should call your father and let him know I'm going to have to put you in jail⁴."

"My father is not home, he is a printer. He works⁵ nights."

"Who is at home." Mr. Carl asked.

"My mother, I think."

Mr. Carl stared to go to the phone. Alfred's fears made him raise his voice. He wanted to show he was afraid of nobody. He acted this way every time he got into trouble. This had happened many times since he left school. At such times he always spoke in a loud voice as he did tonight.

"Just a minute." he said to Mr. Carl, "You don't have to get anybody else into this. You don't have to tell her." Alfred tried to sound big. But * he was like a child. He hoped that someone at home would come quickly to save him. But Mr. Carl was already talking to his mother. He told her to come to the store in a hurry.

Alfred thought his mother would come rushing in, eyes burning with anger. Maybe she would be crying and would push him away when he tried to explain to her. She would make him feel so small. Yet, he wanted her to come quickly before Mr. Carl called in a policeman. Alfred and Mr. Carl waited but said nothing. At last they heard someone at the closed door. Mr. Carl opened it and said, "Come in, Mrs. Hengens." His face was hard and serious.

Alfred's mother came in with a friendly smile on her face and put out her hand to Mr. Carl and said politely.

"I'm Mrs. Higgins, Alfred's mother."

Mr. Carl was surprised at the way she came in. She was very calm, quiet and friendly.

"Is Alfred in trouble?" Mrs. Hengens asked.

"He is. He has been taking things from the store, little things like toothpaste and lipsticks⁶. Things he can easily sell."

Mrs. Higgins looked at her son and said sadly.

"Is it so? Alfred."

"Yes."

"Why have you been doing this?" she asked.

"I've been spending money I believe."

"On what?"

"Going around with the boys, I guess." said Alfred.

Mrs. Higgins put out her hand and touched Mr. Carl's arm with great gentle nails as if she knew just how he felt. She spoke as if she did not want to cause him any more trouble. She said, "If you will just listen to me before doing anything." Her voice was cool and she turned her head away as if she had said too much already. Then she looked again at Mr. Carl with a pleasant smile and asked, "What do you want to do, Mr. Carl?"

"I was going to get a car. This was I should do, call the police."

She answered, "Yes, I think so. It's not for me to save because he is my son. Yet I sometimes think a little good advice is the best thing for a boy at soaking⁷ times in his life."

Mrs. Higgins looked like a different woman to her son outspread, there she was with a gentle smile saying,

"I wonder if you don't think it would be better just to let him come home with me. He looks like a big fellow, doesn't he? "

Yet it takes some of the long time to get any senses into their heads.

Mr. Carl had expected Alfred's mother to come in nervously⁸, shaking with fear, asking with wet eyes for mercy for her son. But no, she was most calm and pleasant. And was making Mr. Carl feel guilty. After a time, Mr. Carl was shaking his head in a great * with what she was seeing.

"And of course." he said, " I don't want to be cool. I will tell you what I'll do. Tell your son not to come back here again. And let it go at back. Now was that.". And he warmly shook Mrs. Higgins' hand.

"I will never forget your kindness."

"Sorry we have to meet this way." said Mr. Carl, "but I am glad I got in touch with you. Just want him to do the right thing. That it is all."

"It's better to meet like this than never, isn't it?" she said.

Suddenly they held hands as if they liked each other, as if they had known each other for a long time.

"Good night, sir?"

"Good night, Mrs. Higgins. I'm truly sorry."

Mother and son left. They walked along the street in silence. She took long steps and looked straight in front of her. After a time, Alfred said, "Thank God it turn out to like that never again."

"Be quiet! Don't speak to me, you have shamed me enough have the decency⁹ to be quiet."

They reached home at last. Mrs. Higgins took off her coat and without even looking at him, she said to Alfred,

"You are a bad luck. God forgive you! It's one thing after another. Always have them. Why do you stand there so stupidly? Go to bed!"

As she went into kitchen, she said, "Not a word about tonight to your father."

In his bedroom, Alfred heard his mother in the kitchen. There was no shame in him, just pride in his mother's strength. "She was *." he said to himself. He felt he must tell her how * he was. As he got to the kitchen he saw his mother drinking a cup of tea. He was shocked by what he saw. His mother's face as he said was a frightened, broken face. It was not the same cool bright face he saw earlier in the drug store. As Mrs. Segeans lifted the teacup her hands shook. And some of the tea splashed¹⁰ on the table. Her lips moved nervously. She looked very old. He watched his mother without making a sound. The picture of his mother made him want to cry. He felt his youth come into an end. He saw all the troubles he brought his mother in her shaking hand, in the deep lines of worry in her grey face. It seemed to him that this was the first time he had ever really seen his mother.

You have just heard the story "All the years of her life". It was written by Morley Callaghan for the New York magazine. Your storyteller was Shep O'Neal.

Summary of the Story

Sometimes there are moments in a person's life that open a door to revelation¹¹; moments when life discloses¹² a great truth that had previously¹³ been hidden, and huge personal growth and change suddenly become possible. Such moments are surprising, often unasked for, and may well shake up and transform rigidly¹⁴ held perceptions¹⁶ and beliefs. They may be more valuable for a person than months or years of dull, predictable day-to-day living. Such a moment is the essence¹⁷ of Callaghan's "All the Years of Her Life," which seems like a slight story until the last paragraph, when one single perception¹⁵ on the part of Alfred changes his life completely. There are so many implications¹⁸ in that one moment of heightened¹⁹ perception and understanding that...

1 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

2 compact   

adj.紧密的，简明的，紧凑的；v.使紧凑，压缩

参考例句：

• It was a compact package.这是个捆得很紧的包裹。
• The article is compact and well organized.文章严密，又很有章法。

3 lipstick   

n.口红，唇膏

参考例句：

• Taking out her lipstick,she began to paint her lips.她拿出口红，开始往嘴唇上抹。
• Lipstick and hair conditioner are cosmetics.口红和护发素都是化妆品。

4 jail   

n.监狱，看守所；vt.监禁，拘留

参考例句：

• The castle had been used as a jail.这城堡曾用作监狱。
• If she carries on shoplifting,she'll end up in jail.她如果还在店铺里偷东西，最终会被抓进监狱的。

5 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

6 lipsticks   

n.口红，唇膏( lipstick的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She likes feminine things like brushes, lipsticks, scarves and jewellery. 她喜欢画笔、口红、围巾和珠宝等女性的东西。 来自时文部分
• She had two lipsticks in her purse. 她的手提包里有两支口红。 来自辞典例句

7 soaking   

v.浸，浸湿(soak的现在分词)；吸收，吸入adj.湿透的；浸透的n.浸湿，浸透adv.湿透地

参考例句：

• That coat is soaking—take it off. 上衣湿透了—脱下来吧。
• I tried to squeeze the water out of my soaking skirt. 我用力拧掉我那件湿透了的裙子上的水。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 nervously   

adv.神情激动地，不安地

参考例句：

• He bit his lip nervously,trying not to cry.他紧张地咬着唇，努力忍着不哭出来。
• He paced nervously up and down on the platform.他在站台上情绪不安地走来走去。

9 decency   

n.体面，得体，合宜，正派，庄重

参考例句：

• His sense of decency and fair play made him refuse the offer.他的正直感和公平竞争意识使他拒绝了这一提议。
• Your behaviour is an affront to public decency.你的行为有伤风化。

10 splashed   

v.使（液体）溅起( splash的过去式和过去分词 )；（指液体）溅落

参考例句：

• Water splashed onto the floor. 水哗的一声泼洒在地板上。
• The cowboy splashed his way across the shallow stream with his cow. 牧童牵着牛淌过浅溪。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 revelation   

n.泄露，揭示，展示，惊人的新发现

参考例句：

• Her true nature was a revelation to me.她的真实性格对我是一个新发现。
• The revelation of the plot of the traitors caused their capture.反叛者阴谋的泄露使他们被捕。

12 discloses   

说出( disclose的第三人称单数 )； 揭露； 使显露； 使暴露

参考例句：

• As I am regretting the advent of dark, the Yangtze discloses a new night-time enchantment. 当我正为夜色降临而惋惜的时候，黑夜里的长江却向我展开另外一种魅力。 来自汉英文学 - 现代散文
• When that person discloses, my part in this business will cease and determine. 那个人一出面，我和这件事的关系就从此结束了。

13 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

14 rigidly   

adv.刻板地，僵化地

参考例句：

• Life today is rigidly compartmentalized into work and leisure. 当今的生活被严格划分为工作和休闲两部分。
• The curriculum is rigidly prescribed from an early age. 自儿童时起即已开始有严格的课程设置。

15 perception   

n.感知，感觉，觉察(力)；认识，观念，看法

参考例句：

• What's your perception of the matter?你对此事有什么看法？
• He was a man of keen perception.他是一个感觉敏锐的人。

16 perceptions   

感知（能力）( perception的名词复数 )； 觉察（力）； 认识； 观念

参考例句：

• Her perceptions and intuitions about human nature were fascinating. 她对人性的理解和感知引人入胜。
• There was no inside to Whitman's perceptions. 惠特曼的直觉里没有内涵。

17 essence   

n.本质，实质，精华，精粹

参考例句：

• We must try to get to the essence of things.我们必须想法抓住事物的本质。
• The two things are the same in outward form but different in essence.这两件东西外表形式一样，但实质不同。

18 implications   

n. 暗示，含意，牵连，卷入

参考例句：

• The development of the site will have implications for the surrounding countryside. 这个地点的开发将会影响周围的乡村。
• The research has far-reaching implications for medicine as a whole. 这项研究对整个医学界都有着深远的影响。

19 heightened   

（使）变高， （使）增大( heighten的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）提高； （使）加强[重]

参考例句：

• Tension has heightened after the recent bomb attack. 最近的炸弹袭击之后，情势更加紧张。
• The lively dance heightened the joyous atmosphere of the scene. 轻快的舞蹈给这场戏渲染了欢乐气氛。