雙語故事:A Coke And A Smile 可樂與微笑

I know now that the man who sat with me on the old wooden stairs that hot summer night over thirty-five years ago was not a tall man. But to a five-year-old, he was a giant. We sat side by side, watching the sun go down behind the old Texaco service station across the busy street. A street that I was never allowed to cross unless accompanied by an adult or at the very least, an older sibling.

現在，我知道三十五年多前那個炎熱的夏夜和我坐在舊木樓梯上的那個男人個子並不高，但是對於一個五歲的孩子來說，他就是個巨人。我們肩並肩坐着，一起看太陽在繁忙的街對面那個老德克薩克加油站後面落下。我不能獨自穿過那條街，除非跟着一個成人，或者很少的時候能跟着一個大點的兄弟姐妹。

Cherry-scented smoke from Grampy's pipe kept the hungry mosquitoes at bay while gray, wispy swirls danced around our heads. Now and again, he blew a smoke ring and laughed as I tried to target the hole with my finger. I, clad in a cool summer nightie, and Grampy, his sleeveless T-shirt, sat watching the traffic. We counted cars and tried to guess the color of the next one to turn the corner.

從祖父菸斗裏噴出的散發着櫻桃香味的灰白色煙霧在我們腦袋周圍飄蕩，使飢餓的蚊子不敢靠近。時不時的，他吹出一個菸圈，當我試圖把手指穿過菸圈是他笑了。穿着涼爽夏日睡衣的我和穿着無袖T-恤的祖父坐着一起看着路上的交通。我們數着汽車，並猜下一輛要從街角拐過來的汽車的顏色。

Once again, I was caught in the middle of circumstances. The fourth born of six children, it was not uncommon that I was either too young or too old for something. This night I was both. While my two baby brothers slept inside the house, my three older siblings played with friends around the corner, where I was not allowed to go. I stayed with Grampy, and that was okay with me. I was where I wanted to be. My grandfather was baby-sitting while my mother, father and grandmother went out.

又一次，我陷入了兩難的境地。作爲對於很多事我的年齡不是太小就是太大，這是很尋常的。那天晚上我兩者都是，當我的兩個小弟弟在屋裏睡覺的時候，我的三個哥哥姐姐和朋友們在街角玩耍，而我是不可以去的。我和祖父呆在一起，這是可以的，我在自己想呆的地方。在母親，父親和祖母都外出的時候，祖父就充當保姆的角色。

“Thirsty?" Grampy asked, never removing the pipe from his mouth.
“渴嗎？”祖父問道，嘴裏依舊含着菸斗。
“Yes," was my reply.
“是的，”我答道。
" How would you like to run over to the gas station there and get yourself a bottle of coke?"
“想跑到加油站那裏給自己買罐可樂嗎？”

I couldn't believe my ears. Had I heard right? Was he talking to me? On my family's modest income, coke was not a part of our budget or diet. A few tantalizing sips was all I had ever had, and certainly never my own bottle.

我不敢相信自己的耳朵，我沒聽錯麼？他在和我說話麼？以我家那微薄的收入，可樂不在預算或食物內。我有的只是偶爾一次乾着急的吸一口，從沒有過一罐。

"Okay," I replied shyly, already wondering how I would get across the street. Surely Grampy was going to come with me.
“好，”我羞怯的回答，並且疑惑怎麼能穿過馬路，當然，祖父要和我一起去。

Grampy stretched his long leg out straight and reached his huge hand deep into the pocket. I could hear the familiar jangling of the loose change he always carried. Opening his fist, he exposed a mound of silver coins. There must have been a million dollars there. He instructed me to pick out a dime. After he deposited the rest of the change back into his pocket, he stood up.

祖父伸開他那長長的腿，他的大手深深的伸入口袋，我可以聽到他經常裝的那些很零的零錢那熟悉的吵鬧聲。他展開拳頭，一堆銀幣露了出來，估計有一百萬，然後他讓我拿出一個一角的硬幣。他在將剩下的放進口袋後站了起來。

"Okay," he said, helping me down the stairs and to the curb, " I'm going to stay here and keep an ear out for the babies. I'll tell you when it's safe to cross. You go over to the coke machine, get your coke and come back out. Wait for me to tell you when it's safe to cross back."

“好，”他說着，幫我下了樓梯然後一起走向路邊。“我會呆在這兒並留意睡着的孩子，我會告訴你什麼時候過去是安全的，你走到可樂機，拿到你的可樂然後站在外面，等着我告訴你什麼時候回來是安全的。
”
My heart pounded. I clutched my dime tightly in my sweaty palm. Excitement took my breath away.

我的心快跳出來了，我將我那一角硬幣緊緊地攥在出汗的手裏，興奮地快喘不上氣了。

Grampy held my hand tightly. Together we looked up the street and down, and back up again. He stepped off the curb and told me it was safe to cross. He let go of my hand and I ran. I ran faster than I had ever run before. The street seemed wide. I wondered if I would make it to the other side. Reaching the other side, I turned to find Grampy. There he was, standing exactly where I had left him, smiling proudly. I waved.

祖父緊緊地拉着我的手，我們一起看着馬路，上上下下的看了個遍，又退了回去，他走下路邊告訴我可以過去了。他鬆開我的手，我就跑過去了，比以前任何時候跑的都快。馬路看起來很寬，我懷疑自己是否可以穿過。一到路對面我就回頭看祖父，他就站在我離開他的那個地方，驕傲的笑着，我衝他招了招手。

"Go on, hurry up," he yelled..
“繼續，快點，”他喊道。

My heart pounded wildly as I walked inside the dark garage.I had been inside the garage before with my father. My surroundings were familiar. I heard the Coca-Cola machine motor humming even before I saw it. I walked directly to the big old red-and-white dispenser. I knew where to insert my dime. I had seen it done before and had fantasized about this moment many times.

我走進漆黑的車庫是心激烈的跳着，以前和父親來過，周圍是熟悉的，甚至在我看到可口可樂機之前我就能聽見它發動機嗡嗡的聲音。我直接走向那大大的，紅白相間的舊自動售貨機，我知道要把我的銀幣塞進哪裏，我以前見過，並且很多次想象那個瞬間。

The big old monster greedily accepted my dime, and I heard the bottles shift. On tiptoes I reached up and opened the heavy door. There they were: one neat row of thick green bottles, necks staring directly at me, and ice cold from the refrigeration. I held the door open with my shoulder and grabbed one. With a quick yank, I pulled it free from its bondage. Another one immediately took its place. The bottle was cold in my sweaty hands. I will never forget the feeling of the cool glass on my skin. With two hands, I positioned the bottleneck under the heavy brass opener that was bolted to the wall. The cap dropped into an old wooden box, and I reached in to retrieve it. It was cold and bent in the middle, but I knew I needed to have this souvenir. Coke in hand, I proudly marched back out into the early evening dusk. Grampy was waiting patiently. He smiled.

那個老巨人貪婪的吞下了我的硬幣，然後我聽到可樂罐子移動的聲音，我踮起腳尖，打開那沉重的門，它們就在那兒：粗粗的綠色罐子整齊的排成一排，齊齊的盯着我看，冰箱裏的涼氣也出來了。我用肩膀抵着門，抓着一罐，猛地一拉，就把它從束縛中救出來了，而另一罐馬上佔據了它的位置。我那汗溼的手裏的罐子很涼，我不會忘記那那涼涼的玻璃瓶在我皮膚上的感覺。兩手抓着瓶子，我把瓶頸放在拴在牆上的黃銅起子的下面，瓶蓋兒落在一個木頭盒子裏，我伸手把它撿了出來。它涼涼的，並且中間彎曲了，但我知道我要留着這個紀念品。把可樂拿在手裏，我驕傲的走出去，並走進黃昏的夜色裏，祖父耐心的笑着等着我。

"Stop right there," he yelled. One or two cars sped by me, and once again, Grampy stepped off the curb.” Come on, now," he said, "Run." I did. Cool brown foam sprayed my hands.” Don’t ever do that alone," he warned. I held the coke bottle tightly; fearful he would make me pour it into a cup, ruining this dream come true. He didn't. One long swallow of the cold beverage cooled my sweating body. I don't think I ever felt so proud.

“停在那兒，”他喊道。一兩輛車從我身邊駛過，再一次，祖父走到路邊。“現在，過來，”他說道，“跑。”我那樣做了，涼涼的棕色泡沫濺到了我的手上。“千萬不能自己這樣做，”他警告我。我緊緊的抓着瓶子，怕他讓我將它倒入杯子，破壞我這實現的夢，他沒有那樣做。長長的喝了一大口飲料，我出汗的身體涼快了很多。我從沒感到這樣驕傲過。