雙語 ● 為母親祈禱　Pray for My Mother

■ 為母親祈禱　Pray for My Mother

◎ Ann Landers

Dear God,

親愛的上帝：

Now that I am no longer young, I have friends whose mothers have passed away. I have heard these sons and daughters say they never fully appreciated their mothers until it was too late to tell them.

如今我不再年輕，一些朋友的母親已經(jīng)去世。我曾聽這些子女說，他們從沒向母親充分表達過他們的感激之情，而等到要告訴時為時已晚。

I am blessed with the dear mother who is still alive. I appreciate her more each day. My mother does not change, but I do. As I grow older and wiser, I realize what an extraordinary[12] person she is. How sad that I am unable to speak these words in her presence, but they flow easily from my pen.

幸運的是，我親愛的母親依然健在。我對她的感情與日俱增。母親沒有變，我卻變了。隨著年歲的增長，我越來越懂事了，我意識到她是多么了不起的人。這些話在她面前我難以啟齒，但在筆下可以輕易地寫出來，這令我感到多么難過。

How does a daughter begin to thank her mother for life itself? For the love, patience and just plain hard work that go into raising a child? For running after a toddler[13] , for understanding a moody teenager, for tolerating a college student who knows everything? For waiting for the day when a daughter realizes her mother really is?

一個女兒該怎樣開口感謝她的母親所給予的生命？感謝她在撫養(yǎng)孩子時所付出的愛、耐心以及無私的辛勤勞動？感謝她跟在蹣跚學步的孩子身后奔跑，對喜怒無常的少女的理解，以及對一個自以為是的大學生的寬容？感謝她等待女兒認識到她真是一位好母親的一天？

How does a grown woman thank for a mother for continuing to be a mother? For being ready with advice (when asked) or remaining silent when it is most appreciated? For not saying “I told you so”, when she could have uttered[14] these words dozens of times? For being essentially herself—loving, thoughtful, patient, and forgiving?

一個成年女子該怎樣感謝母親依然如故的角色？感謝在被問到時她會及時提供良言，而在不需要時她會保持沉默？感謝她沒有說“我告訴過你”，而她本來可以說上許多次？感謝她始終不變的愛心、體貼周到、耐心和寬容？

I don’t know how, dear God, except to bless her as richly as she deserves and to help me live up to the example she has set. I pray that I will look as good in the eyes of my children as my mother looks in mine. 我不知道該怎樣表達，親愛的上帝，除了請求你好好地保佑她——那是她該得到的——并幫助我朝她做出的榜樣看齊。我祈禱，在孩子的眼里，我會如同母親在我眼里一般好。

A daughter 一位女兒

超多雙語閱讀，盡在聽力課堂