Back at school, I began to grow quickly. I played soccer and made a good friend. But I still stopped by the cottage on weekends, and there was always fresh shortbread.
开学之后,我开始迅速地成长。我开始踢足球并交了一个好朋友。但周末我仍然会去小屋待一会儿,那里永远都有新鲜的黄油酥饼。
One morning when I went downstairs to the kitchen, there was a familiar-looking biscuit tin on the table. I eyed it as I went to the refrigerator.
—天早上,当我下楼去厨房时,桌上放着那个熟悉的饼干罐,我走向冰箱时看到了它。
My mother was regarding me with a strange gentleness. "Son," she began, painfully. And from the tone of her voice I knew everything instantly.
我母亲以一种不同寻常的温柔的眼神看着我。“孩子,”她痛苦地开口了。从她的语调中我立即明白了一切。
She rested her hand on the biscuit tin. "Mr. Crawford brought these this morning." She paused, and I could tell she was having difficulty. "Mrs. Robertson-Glasgow left them for you."
她把手放在饼干罐上。“这是克劳福德先生今天早上拿来的,”她停了一下,我可以看出她有什么话难以说出口,“是罗伯逊-格拉斯哥夫人留给你的。”
I stared out the window, tears stinging my eyes.
我盯着窗外,眼泪浸满双眼。
"I'm sorry, Michael, but she died yesterday," she went on. "She was very old and very ill, and it was time."
“我很难过,迈克尔,她昨天去世了,”她继续说道,“她年纪太大了,而且又得了病,是说再见的时候了。”
My mother put her arm about my shoulder. "You made her very happy, because she was lonely," she said. "You were lucky to be such a good friend for her."
母亲搂着我的肩膀。“你曾经让她非常愉快,因为她很孤独,”她说,“你很幸运能成为她的一个那么好的朋友。”
Wordlessly, I took the tin to my room and set it on my bed. Then, hurrying downstairs, I burst through the front door and ran to the woods.
默默地,我拿起罐子走进房间并把它放到我的床上。然后迅速下楼,冲出前门,跑向树林。