小桔灯
作者：冰心
译者：深圳大学 赖小琪
这是十几年以前的事了。
It happened more than a decade ago.
在一个春节前一天的下午，我到重庆郊外去看一位朋友。她住在那个乡村的乡公所楼上。走上一段阴暗的仄仄的楼梯，进到一间有一张方桌和几张竹凳、墙上装着一架电话的屋子，再进去就是我的朋友的房间，和外间只隔一幅布帘。她不在家，窗前桌上留着一张条子，说是她临时有事出去，叫我等着她。
On the afternoon of the day before the Spring Festival, I went to Chongqin to drop in on one of my friends, who was living in a small department in a village. After climbing a dark and twisted staircase, I entered a house with a square table, several stools and a telephone pegged on the wall. The inside was my friend’s bedroom only isolated from the living room with a curtain. She was out then, leaving a message on the table saying that she was on emergency temporarily asked me to wait for her.
我在她桌前坐下，随手拿起一张报纸来看，忽然听见外屋板门吱地一声开了。过了一会，又听见有人在挪动那竹凳子。我掀开帘子，看见一个小姑娘，只有八九岁光景，瘦瘦的苍白的脸，冻得发紫的嘴唇，头发很短，穿一身很破旧的衣裤，光脚穿一双草鞋，正在登上竹凳想去摘墙上的听话器，看见我似乎吃了一惊，把手缩了回来。我问她：“你要打电话吗？”她一面爬下竹凳，一面点头说：“我要×× 医院，找胡大夫，我妈妈刚才吐了许多血！”我问：“你知道××医院的电话号码吗？”她摇了摇头说：“我正想问电话局……”我赶紧从机旁的电话本子里找到医院的号码，就又问她：“找到了大夫，我请他到谁家去呢？”她说：“你只要说王春林家里病了，她就会来的。”
I was sitting in front of the desk and reading a piece of newspaper casually. All of a sudden, a sound of creaking came to my ears and then could tell someone was moving a tool. Out of curiosity I went out and saw a little girl of 8 or 9 years old with a pale face and chilled-to-purple lips. Her hair was short and she was wearing a shabby clothing and straw sandals, standing upon the tool to reach the phone on wall. She was seemingly taken aback by me and pulled back her hands swiftly. I asked her, “Do you want to make a call?” she said as she went down the tool, “ Yes, I am going to call Doctor Hu. My mum has just spitted out a lot of blood!” “Do you know his number?” I asked. She shook her heads and said, “I just want to check it out by phoning the Phone Center.” I quickly took the directory by the phone and found out the hospital’s phone number. I asked her, “Where shall I ask the doctor go?” She said, “You can tell her that Wang Chunlin’s ill, then she will know.”
我把电话打通了，她感激地谢了我，回头就走。我拉住她问：“你的家远吗？” 她指着窗外说：“就在山窝那棵大黄果树下面，一下子就走到的。”说着就登登登地下楼去了。
I made the call finally, and she thanked me gratefully and wanted to return home. I held her and asked, “Is your home far away?” She pointed through the window and said, “It is only located under the big tree over there. You can get there in no time!” Then she was hasting out down the stairs.
我又回到屋里去，把报纸前前后后都看完了，又拿起一本《唐诗三百首》来，看了一半，天色越发阴暗了，我的朋友还不回来。我无聊地站了起来，望着窗外浓雾里迷茫的山景，看到那棵黄果树下面的小屋，忽然想去探望那个小姑娘和她生病的妈妈。我下楼在门口买了几个大红的桔子，塞在手提袋里，顺着歪斜不平的石板路，走到那小屋的门口。
I came back into the house and read through the whole newspaper, then picked up a book titled “Three Hundred Poems in Tang Dynasty”. After finishing half of it, it got dark and my friend was still out. I felt tedious and stood up from the tool, watching the misty landscapes of the mountains and the house under the big tree. Suddenly, I felt an impulse to pay a visit to the little girl and her sick mother. I bought some big and red oranges and crammed them into my handbag, walking down the uneven stone path to the house.
我轻轻地扣着板门，发出清脆的"咚咚"声,刚才那个小姑娘出来开了门，抬头看了我，先愣了一下，后来就微笑了，招手叫我进去。这屋子很小很黑，靠墙的板铺上，她的妈妈闭着眼平躺着，大约是睡着了，被头上有斑斑的血痕，她的脸向里侧着，只看见她脸上的乱发，和脑后的一个大髻。门边一个小炭炉，上面放着一个小沙锅，微微地冒着热气。这小姑娘把炉前的小凳子让我坐了，她自己就蹲在我旁边，不住地打量我。我轻轻地问：“大夫来过了吗？”她说：“来过了，给妈妈打了一针……她现在很好。”
I knocked at the door lightly and the girl opened it for me. She looked at me surprisingly for a while and then smiled me in. The house was all too small and dark. On the bed against the wall was lying her mother with eyes closed, seemingly asleep. The angle of sheet was stained by blood. Her face turned inward to the wall and I could only see the messy hair on her face and her bun. There was a small oven by the door, upon which was a pan steaming slightly. The girl moved the stool by the oven to me and she was only squatting aside, staring at me constantly. I asked gently, “Has the doctor come?” “Yes, and he gave mum an injection. Now she is better!” She said.
她又像安慰我似地说：“你放心，大夫明早还要来的。”我问：“她吃过东西吗？这锅里是什么？”她笑说：“红薯稀饭，我们的年夜饭。”我想起了我带来的桔子，就拿出来放在床边的小矮桌上。她没有作声，只伸手拿过一个最大的桔子来，用小刀削去上面的一段皮，又用两只手把底下的一大半轻轻地揉捏着。
Then she said to me as if comforting me, “Do not worry. The doctor will come again tomorrow morning.” I asked, “Did she eat anything? What’s in the pot?” She smiled, “It is the porridge with sweet potato. It is our meal for the Eve of the Spring Festival.” I thought of the oranges and put them on the table by the bed. She was speechless and took the largest one, cutting out upper peel with a knife while stabilizing the underside and trying to maintain it intact.
我低声问：“你家还有什么人？”她说：“现在没有什么人，我爸爸到外面去了……”她没有说下去，只慢慢地从桔皮里掏出一瓤一瓤的桔瓣来，放在她妈妈的枕头边。
I asked her with a low voice, “Who else lives with you?” She said, “No, my father is out.” She did not continue, but got the segments of the oranges out from the peel, putting them on the side of her mother’s pillow.
炉火的微光，渐渐地暗了下去，外面更黑了。我站起来要走，她拉住我，一面极其敏捷地拿过穿着麻线的大针，把那小桔碗四周相对地穿起来，像一个小筐似的，用一根小竹棍挑着，又从窗台上拿了一段短短的洋蜡头，放在里面点起来，递给我说：“天黑了，路滑，这盏小桔灯照你上山吧！” Fire in the oven was fading away, and it seemed much darker outside. I stood up and meant to leave, only to be held back by the little girl. She agilely took a pin with string and inserted it through the peels of the oranges in all four sides, making it like a basket. Then she put a small candle inside, lit it up and used a small stick to hang the whole small lantern. Finally she handed it over to me and said, “It is dark outside and the road is tough. You can use this orange lantern to light the way up the mountain.”
我赞赏地接过，谢了她，她送我出到门外，我不知道说什么好，她又像安慰我似地说：“不久，我爸爸一定会回来的。那时我妈妈就会好了,一定!”她用小手在面前画一个圆圈，最后按到我的手上：“我们大家也都好了！”显然地，这“大家”也包括我在内。泪水在我眼中打转……
I received it appreciably and thanked her. She saw me off out of the door. I did not know what to say to her, but she again said to me like comforting, “Before long, my dad will surely come back and my mum will recover!” She drew a small circle in front with her small hands and finally pressed her finger on my hand, saying, “At that time, all of us will be fine!” Apparently, I was included in the “us”. Tear was spinning in my eyes.
我提着这灵巧的小桔灯，慢慢地在黑暗潮湿的山路上走着。这朦胧的桔红的光，实在照不了多远，但这小姑娘的镇定、勇敢、乐观的精神鼓舞了我，我似乎觉得眼前有无限光明！
I took the delicate orange lantern and walked slowly along the dark and humid mountain path. The dim light of the lantern could not reach far actually, but the composure, bravery and optimism of the girl tremendously inspired me, making me feel endless bright in front!
我的朋友已经回来了，看见我提着小桔灯，便问我从哪里来。我说：“从…… 从王春林家来。”她惊异地说：“王春林，那个木匠，你怎么认得他？去年山下医学院里，有几个学生，被当做共产党抓走了，以后王春林也失踪了，据说他常替那些学生送信……”
After I reached my destination, my friend had already come back. She asked me where I got the lantern. I told her I just came from Wang Chunlin’s house. She felt stunned and asked me, “How do you know him? He was a carpenter. Last year in the Medical College, some students were arrested as members of communist party. Then he also disappeared. It is said that he often delivers letters for those students.”
当夜，我就离开那山村，再也没有听见那小姑娘和她母亲的消息。
但是从那时起，每逢春节，我就想起那盏小桔灯。十二年过去了，那小姑娘的爸爸一定早回来了。她妈妈也一定好了吧？因为我们“大家”都“好”了！
That night I left the village and never again hear any news about the little girl and her mother.
But since then, every Spring Festival, I will think of the small orange lantern. Twelve years has passed and the girl’s father must have already come back. Her mother must also have recovered, because all of us are already fine now!” |
