第27章 金色的眼睛In Her Golden Eyes
戴安娜·尼科尔斯 /Diane Nichols
My six-year-old daughter, Mary, held on to my hand as we walked through the animal shelter. We wanted to pick just the right puppy for her sister Kitty's 12th birthday. I scanned each cage, noticing all the pairs of needy brown eyes staring back at us. It was neediness for love and a happy home-things the girls and I also hungered for since their father and I had divorced.
“Here are our newest arrivals,” the volunteer said. He led us to a cage where three puppies were sleeping. They were the size of small bear cubs with beautiful fur.
“What kind are they?” I asked, stooping down to take a closer look.
“They're chow mixes,” the boy said, “I've never seen such awesome-looking dogs.”
My heart quickened as the pup in the middle suddenly yawned and looked up at us. She was breathtaking, with oversized paws and silvery-black wolf markings on her face. Most of all, it was her eyes that struck me. They were so gentle and sweet. As golden as her fur. Something told me that she was the one.
As long as I live, I'll never forget Kitty's face when we surprised her with her new companion.
“I'm going to name her Cheyenne.” Kitty beamed.
In the coming days, Cheyenne accomplished exactly what I was hoping for. Instead of the children feeling homesick for the life we'd lost, they spent time playing with their new puppy. Instead of feeling depressed over missing their daddy, they romped and laughed for hours. It gave me hope that they would make this very diff icult transition a bit better-if only something would help me do the same.
It was on a late April afternoon that things took a horrible turn. The girls were in the backyard playing with Cheyenne while I went to the store. When I got back home and pulled into the driveway, a pickup truck came speeding down our street. I got out of my car, keys in hand, and saw that Cheyenne had gotten loose. She ran past me in a blur.
“Cheyenne!” I called out. “No! Get back here!” But it was too late. She chased after the truck, caught up to the front tires, and was f lipped in the air before landing with a thud on the side of the road.
Luckily, the vet was still open and they took her right in. I kept watching Cheyenne's side, willing her to keep breathing as the vet put her on the examining table.
“The front leg appears to be the worst of her injuries,” he said, pinching between her toes with a silver clamp. “The nerves have been damaged and she doesn't have any feeling. I'm afraid we'll have to amputate.”
The day of Cheyenne's surgery was the longest day of my life. Nothing prepared us for what we would see once we went to pick her up. In the bottom cage, Cheyenne lay panting and blinking sleepy eyes, the entire right side of her body shaved clean from her stomach to her neck. A white bandage was wrapped around the shoulder area where her leg used to be. A plastic tube was also taped to the area to help the surgical site drain. She looked totally miserable. Tears slid from my eyes as I saw Cheyenne's tail give a faint wag.
That night we all camped on the f loor to sleep next to Cheyenne. As she moaned in agony and lay on the side unable to move, I kept trying to picture her as she used to be: running, playing, jumping up on the bed to snuggle down next to me. I felt frightened and uncertain, wondering how she would ever be that same carefree pup again. In a way, I understood the kind of trauma she was going through. One day you were happy, then life just shattered, leaving you in a world of pain.
Kitty and I took shifts for the f irst few nights. We'd keep watch, try to comfort her, give her pain pills and feed her vanilla ice cream from a spoon. She'd doze, but usually she was too uncomfortable to sleep. Every few hours, we'd carry her outside and help her stand so she could go to the bathroom. We were exhausted, but nothing was more important than Cheyenne coming back to us-even if she would never be the same again.
On Monday I had to take care of her myself when Kitty went to school. Mary kept busy with her coloring books while I constantly hovered over Cheyenne. I changed her bandages and made sure she wasn't trying to bite at them. I stroked her head and kept telling her how strong she was. Seeing her so miserable and watching the blood ooze from her drainage tube broke my heart over and over again. I missed her sweet eyes looking at me with love instead of so much suffering.
“You're a survivor,” I whispered in her ear. “We need you, so you have to get better. Those children are depending on you, so please... don't give up. F ight and get through this.”
As I said these things to her, something struck me deep inside. The same words applied to me. It had been a night-mare since the divorce, the pain so deep that I wanted to curl up and die; I didn't see myself able to stand on my own. But weren't the children depending on me, too? Didn't I have to f ight and get through this? Tears ran down my cheeks as I lay my face against Cheyenne's muzzle. It was so soft and her breath fanned my skin. Breath that reminded me how precious life was.
“I'll make a deal with you, girl,” I said. “If you f ight and get through this, I'll f ight my way back, too.We'll learn how to walk on our own together.”
From that day on, things steadily improved. Cheyenne looked more alert and comfortable, daring to take her f irst steps, while I started crying less and smiling more. A healing was beginning to take place and it felt so very good. One day at a time, one step at a time, Cheyenne and I were making it together.
“Look, mom! She's doing it! Cheyenne's walking on her own!” Kitty pointed as Cheyenne wandered about the yard one week later. She managed just f ine with the front leg missing. In fact, it seemed as if she didn't miss it much at all.
Mary clapped happily. “Just like her old self!”
I thought about that a moment and had to disagree. “Actually, sweetheart, I think Cheyenne's going to be better than she used to be. She'll be stronger because she's a survivor now. Just like us... better than ever.”
In that instant, Cheyenne stopped and looked at me. The gleam was back in those golden eyes. We both had a new life to look forward to, one precious step at a time.
我六岁的女儿玛丽，拉着我的手走进了一家动物避难所。我们想挑选一只合适的小狗给她的姐姐凯蒂作十二岁的生日礼物。我仔细地看着每一个笼子，看到那一双双渴求的棕色眼睛盯着我们。那是对爱和快乐家园的期盼。自从我和她们的父亲离婚之后，这些同样也是女儿们和我渴求的东西。
“这些都是新到的。”志愿者说着将我们带到一个笼子前面，那里有三只正在睡觉的小狗，漂亮的皮毛就像小熊一样。
“她们都是什么品种？”我边问边弯下身子近距离地看着她们。
“她们是中国混血狗，”那个志愿者说，“我从来没有见过这样看上去令人敬畏的狗。”
中间的那只小狗突然打着哈欠看着我们，我的心跳加速了。她令人感到惊奇，大大的爪子，脸上长着银黑色的狼斑。最主要的是她的眼睛，真是让我震惊，那么温和、可爱，就像她的皮毛一样，是金黄色的。冥冥之中好像有什么在告诉我，就是她了。
我永远无法忘记——当我们将凯蒂的新伙伴带到她面前时她惊讶的表情。“我要叫她夏安。”凯蒂愉快地说道。
在接下来的日子里，夏安完成了我所期望的一切。孩子们不再对我们失去的生活感到苦恼，相反，她们开始与她们的新狗狗做游戏。她们不再因失去父亲而感到沮丧，反而总是蹦蹦跳跳，开心地笑着。所发生的一切给了我希望，她们会将这个艰难的过渡期过得更好，但愿有什么能够帮助我做同样的事情。
四月末的一个下午，事情发生了可怕的转变。女孩们和夏安在后院玩耍时，我去了商店。当我回到家，走上车道时，一辆皮卡车快速驶入我们这条街道。我下了车，手里拿着钥匙，看到夏安的绳索松了，她就像一阵烟似的从我的身旁跑过。
“夏安！”我喊道，“不！回来！”但是已经太迟了。她追赶着皮卡车，并撞在车子的前轮上，身体被抛向空中，“砰”的一声摔在路边。
幸运的是，兽医院还开着门，他们收治了夏安。我一直守在夏安身边关心着她，希望她在医生将她放到检查台上之前还活着。
“前肢看起来是受伤最严重的地方，”医生说着便用一个银色的夹子在她的爪间捏着，“神经已经受损，她没有任何知觉，我担心我们必须要把它切除。”
夏安手术那日，我度过了生命中最漫长的一天。当我们再次见到她，对把她带到我们的身边是那么毫无准备。夏安躺在笼子里喘息着，眨着睡意朦胧的眼睛，她身体右侧从颈部到腹部的毛都被剃得干干净净。一条白色的绷带缠绕在她的肩部，那里原来是她的一条腿。一只塑料管插在那里以帮助手术定位。她看起来是那么痛苦。当我看到夏安的尾巴虚弱地摇晃时，眼泪顿时流了下来。
那天晚上，我们都睡在地板上，陪着夏安。当她痛苦地呻吟，躺在一侧不能移动的时候，我在脑海中试图将她以前的样子描绘出来：她跑、玩耍、跳到**，依偎在我的身边。我感到恐惧不安，不知道她以后能否变回成原来那只无忧无虑的小狗。某种意义上，我了解她身上所遭受的那种病痛。以前你过得开心，突然生活变得支离破碎了，你身处在一个痛苦的世界中。
最开始的那几个夜晚我和凯蒂轮流照顾她。我们注视着她，试着安慰她，给她止痛片，用勺子喂她吃香草冰淇淋。她打着盹，但是又经常因为疼痛而无法入睡。每过几个小时，我们都会将她抱到外面，帮助她站立，这样她就可以去洗手间了。我们都已经精疲力竭，但是没有什么事情能比夏安回到我们身边更重要了——即使她再也不是以前的那个样子。
周一，凯蒂去学校了，我不得不独自照顾她。玛丽忙着看她的卡通书，而我则不停地围着夏安转。我为她换了新的绷带，并确信她不会试着去咬它们。我拍着她的脑袋，不停地给她讲她是多么强壮。看着她痛苦的表情，看着血从排泄管渗出，我的心碎了一次又一次。回忆中，她用那充满爱意而又甜美的眼睛望着我，而不是如此痛苦。
“你挺过来啦，”我在她的耳旁低声说着，“我们需要你，所以你必须好起来。孩子们依赖你，所以请你……不要放弃，站起来渡过这个难关。”
当我向她说这些话的时候，某些事物触动了我的内心。这些话也适用于我自己。离婚仿佛是一场噩梦，那种痛苦太深了，以至于我想自暴自弃了却此生，我不知道自己能不能独自振作起来。但是，孩子们不也正依靠我吗？难道我能不与痛苦作斗争，渡过这个难关吗？当我将脸靠在夏安的鼻子旁边时，眼泪顺着脸颊流了下来。她的呼吸是那么轻柔，使我的皮肤感到很舒服。呼吸让我想起生命是多么珍贵啊。
“小可爱，我要和你做一个交易，”我说道，“如果你奋力渡过这个难关，我也将会为自己而奋斗。我们都将学到如何依靠自己一路走好。”
从那天起，事情有规律地发生了改变。夏安看起来更加警惕和舒适，勇敢地迈出了她的第一步，而我也开始少哭多笑了。开始复原了，感觉真好。一天一点，一步一点，我和夏安一起努力着。
“看啊，妈妈！她做到了！夏安自己走起来了！”一周之后，当夏安在院子里漫步的时候，凯蒂指着她喊道。尽管她的前腿残了一条，但是她走得非常好。事实上，她看起来好像并没有失去什么。
玛丽开心地鼓起掌来：“就像原来的她！”
我想了想并不同意：“很明显，宝贝，我认为现在的夏安比以前还要好，她会更加强壮的，因为她现在获得了重生。就像我们……比以前更好。”
这一刻，夏安停下来，望着我。那金色的眼睛闪烁着光芒。我们拥有的是值得期待的全新生活，每一刻都要细细品味。
记忆填空
1.My_______ quickened as the pup in the middle suddenly yawned and_______up at us. She was breathtaking, with oversized paws and silvery-black wolf markings on her_______. Most of all, it was her_______ that struck me.
2.As I said_______things to her, something struck me deep inside. The same_______applied to me. It had been a nightmare_______the divorce, the pain so deep that I wanted to curl up and die; I didn't see myself able to_______ on my own.
3.From that day on, things steadily_______ . Cheyenne looked_______alert and comfortable, daring to take her f irst_______ , while I started crying less and smiling more.
佳句翻译
1.我永远无法忘记——当我们将凯蒂的新伙伴带到她面前时她惊讶的表情。
译_______________________________________________________________
2.以前你过得开心，突然生活变得支离破碎了，你身处在一个痛苦的世界中。
译_______________________________________________________________
3.我们拥有的是值得期待的全新生活，每一刻都要细细品味。
译_______________________________________________________________
短语应用
1.Most of all, it was her eyes that struck me.
most of all：最重要的是
造_______________________________________________________________
2.Instead of the children feeling homesick for the life we'd lost, they spent time playing with their new puppy.
instead of：代替；而不是……
造_______________________________________________________________