雙語 ● 奇跡的價值 The Price of Miracle
■ 奇跡的價值 The Price of Miracle
◎ A.A. Allen
Tess was a precocious 8-year-old girl when she heard her Mom and Dad talking about her little brother, Andrew. All she knew was that he was very sick and they were completely out of money. They were moving to an apartment complex next month because Daddy didn’t have the money for the doctor’s bills and their house.
聽爸爸媽媽談起小弟安德魯?shù)氖虑闀r，苔絲已是一個早熟的8歲小女孩。她只知道弟弟病得很厲害，父母卻無錢給他醫(yī)治。下個月他們要搬到一個公寓房，因?yàn)榘职忠呀?jīng)無力支付醫(yī)藥費(fèi)和房款。
“Only a very costly surgery could save him now and it was looking like there was noone to loan us the money.” She heard Daddy say to her tearful Mother with whispered desperation, “Only a miracle can save him now.”
“現(xiàn)在唯一可以救他的辦法就是做手術(shù)，但手術(shù)費(fèi)非常昂貴，沒人肯借錢給我們。”她聽到爸爸對滿含淚水的媽媽低聲而絕望地說道，“現(xiàn)在只有奇跡可以救他?！?
Tess went to her bedroom and pulled a glass jelly jar from its hiding place in the closet. She poured all the change out on the floor and counted it carefully. Three times, even. The total had to be exactly perfect. No chance here for mistakes.
苔絲回到臥室里，從壁櫥里隱蔽的地方拿出一個玻璃罐子，把里面所有的零錢倒在地上，仔細(xì)地數(shù)了三遍，直到確定無誤。
Carefully placing the coins back in the jar and twisting on the cap, she slipped out the back door and made her way 6 blocks to Rexall’s Drug Store with the big red Indian Chief sign above the door.
她小心地把硬幣放回瓶子，把蓋子擰好，然后悄悄地從后門溜出去，穿過六條街區(qū)，來到門上有紅色印地安語標(biāo)志的藥店。
She waited patiently for the pharmacist to give her some attention but he was too busy at this moment. Tess twisted her feet to make a noise. Nothing. She cleared her throat with the most disgusting sound she could muster.
她耐心地等待著藥劑師，可是藥劑師非常忙，并沒有注意到她。苔絲扭動著她的腳，弄出摩擦的聲音——沒有反應(yīng)。她鼓起勇氣大聲地清嗓子——還是沒反應(yīng)。
No good. Finally she took a quarter from her jar and banged it on the glass counter. That did it! “And what do you want?” the pharmacist asked in an annoyed tone of voice. “I’m talking to my brother from Chicago whom I haven’t seen in ages. ” he said without waiting for a reply to his question.
不行。最后，她從瓶子里拿出個2角5分的硬幣摔在玻璃柜臺上，“砰”的一聲發(fā)出清脆的響聲。成功了！“那么你需要點(diǎn)什么？”藥劑師不耐煩地問，“我要去接我的弟弟，他從芝加哥來，我們很多年沒見了?！彼麤]等苔絲說話，就接著說起來。
“Well, I want to talk to you about my brother,” Tess answered back in the same annoyed tone, “he’s really, really sick ... and I want to buy a miracle.”
“我想跟你說下我弟弟的事情，”苔絲用同樣生氣的語調(diào)回答他，“他真的病得很嚴(yán)重……我想為他買個奇跡?！?
“I beg your pardon?” said the pharmacist. “His name is Andrew and he has something bad growing inside his head and my Daddy says only a miracle can save him now. So how much does a miracle cost?”
“你說什么？”藥劑師問道。“他叫安德魯，他病得很厲害，爸爸說現(xiàn)在只有奇跡能救他。所以，請問奇跡多少錢？”
“We don’t sell miracles here, little girl. I’m sorry but I can’t help you.” the pharmacist said, softening a little.
“我們這里不賣奇跡，小女孩，很抱歉，我?guī)筒涣四?。”藥劑師稍微溫和地說。
“Listen, I have the money to pay for it. If it isn’t enough, I will get the rest. Just tell me how much it costs.”
“聽著，我付得起錢。如果這些不夠的話，我就回去取剩下的。這樣，那請告訴我奇跡多少錢？”
The pharmacist’s brother was a well-dressed man. He stooped down and asked the little girl, “What kind of a miracle does your brother need?” “I don’t know.” Tess replied with her eyes welling up.
這時，藥劑師的弟弟來了，他是個穿著講究的男人。他彎下腰，問這個小女孩：“你弟弟需要什么樣的奇跡呢？”“我不知道?！碧z的眼淚涌了上來。
“I just know he’s really sick and Mommy says he needs an operation. But my Daddy can’t pay for it, so I want to use my money.”
“我只知道他病得非常厲害，媽媽說他需要做手術(shù)。但是爸爸支付不起手術(shù)費(fèi)，所以我想用我自己的錢?！?
“How much do you have?” asked the man from Chicago.
“你有多少錢？”這個從芝加哥來的男人問。
“One dollar and eleven cents,” Tess answered barely audibly, “and it’s all the money I have, but I can get some more if I need to.”
“1美元11美分，”苔絲用很勉強(qiáng)才能聽到的聲音回答，“這是我所有的錢，但是，如果不夠的話我再想辦法?！?
“Well, what a coincidence,” smiled the man, “a dollar and eleven cents—the exact price of a miracle for little brothers.” He took her money in one hand and with the other hand he grasped her mitten and said, “Take me to where you live. I want to see your brother and meet your parents. Let’s see if I have the kind of miracle you need.”
“哇，真是太巧了，”男人笑著說，“1美元11美分——正好可以為你弟弟買個奇跡?！彼皇帜弥∨⒌腻X，一手緊緊握住她的手，說：“帶我去你住的地方。我想看看你弟弟和你的父母。讓我們來看看是不是有你需要的那種奇跡?！?
That well-dressed man was Dr. Carlton Armstrong, a surgeon, specializing in neurosurgery. The operation was completed without charge and it wasn’t long until Andrew was home again and doing well. Mom and Dad were happily talking about the chain of events that had led them to this place.
這個穿著得體的男人就是卡爾頓·阿姆斯壯，著名的神經(jīng)外科醫(yī)生。在手術(shù)完成且不需支付任何費(fèi)用后，安德魯回家后不久就康復(fù)了。爸爸和媽媽高興地談?wù)撝@一連串事情的發(fā)生。
“That surgery,” her Mom whispered, “was a real miracle. I wonder how much it would have cost?” Tess smiled. She knew exactly how much a miracle cost ... one dollar and eleven cents ... plus the faith of a little child.
“這個手術(shù)，”母親低聲自語道，“真是個奇跡。我想知道，奇跡到底需要多少錢呢？”苔絲笑了，她清楚地知道一個奇跡的真正價值——1美元11美分，再加上一個小女孩堅強(qiáng)的信念。
