I had known for a long time that the people about me used a method of communication different from mine; and even before I knew that a deaf child could be taught to speak, I was conscious of dissatisfaction with the means of communication I already possessed. One who is entirely dependent upon the manual alphabet has always a sense of restraint, of narrowness. This feeling began to agitate me with a vexing, forward-reaching sense of a lack that should be filled. My thoughts would often rise and beat up like birds against the wind, and I persisted in using my lips and voice. Friends tried to discourage this tendency, fearing lest it would lead to disappointment. But I persisted, and an accident soon occurred which resulted in the breaking down of this great barrier—I heard the story of Ragnhild Kaata.
我很早就知道,人们使用一种与众不同的方式同我交流。我知道一个聋哑孩子是可以学会说话的,因此,我对自己已经拥有的交流手段感到了不满。一个完全依赖手写字母来交流的人总会感觉到处处受限。这种挫折感既令我无比懊恼,又使我进一步意识到,我应该尽快弥补自己的交流缺陷。我的思绪日益高涨,犹如逆风而行的飞鸟;而且,我坚持用自己的嘴唇发音。朋友们则竭力阻止我的热情,他们唯恐我因讲话不成而更加失望。我毫不动摇,随后发生的一件事终于令巨大的障碍轰然倒地——我听说了拉根希尔德·卡塔的故事。
In 1890 Mrs. Lamson, who had been one of Laura Bridgman's teachers, and who had just returned from a visit to Norway and Sweden, came to see me, and told me of Ragnhild Kaata, a deaf and blind girl in Norway who had actually been taught to speak. Mrs. Lamson had scarcely finished telling me about this girl's success before I was on fire with eagerness. I resolved that I, too, would learn to speak. I would not rest satisfied until my teacher took me, for advice and assistance, to Miss Sarah Fuller, principal of the Horace Mann School. This lovely, sweet-natured lady offered to teach me herself, and we began the twenty-sixth of March, 1890.
1890年,刚从挪威和瑞典访问归来的拉姆森夫人来看我,她也是劳拉·布里吉曼的授课教师之一。她对我讲了拉根希尔德·卡塔的故事。拉根希尔德·卡塔是一个又聋又盲的挪威女孩,事实上,她已经成功地学会了开口说话。不等拉姆森夫人把女孩的故事讲完,我的希望之火就已经燃烧起来了。我下定决心,也要学会开口讲话。于是,在他人的建议和协助下,我的老师把我送到了萨拉·富勒小姐那里,她是霍勒斯·曼恩学校的校长。这位和蔼可亲的女士决定亲自为我授课,1890年3月26日是我们的开课日期。
来源:可可英语 //m.moreplr.com/Article/201705/511989.shtml