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Eva lets go of my arm to lift a hand to her throat, touching the string of pearls she has borrowed from my own bride, Ruth, to whom I've been married thirty years.
伊娃松开我的胳膊，抬手到颈边碰触那串珍珠项链——那是她从我30年前的新娘鲁思那儿借的。
Love may last, I want to say, but do not, feeling unsure of my voice. Eva returns her free hand to my arm and tightens her grip. The arm she holds is my left one, close against my racing heart. In her own left arm she balances a great sheaf of flowers-daisies and lilies, marigolds, snapdragons-and in her left hand she holds a Belgian lace handkerchief, also borrowed from Ruth, in case she cries.
我想说，爱可以持久，却没说出来，害怕我的声音会颤抖。伊娃把空下来的手又放回到我的臂弯里握紧。她挎住的是我的左臂，紧贴着我紧张跳动心。在她自己的左臂中，稳稳地抱着一大束花雏菊、百合、万寿菊、金鱼草。她左手拿一块比利时蕾丝手帕，也是从鲁思那儿借来的，以备擦眼泪时用。
The organ strikes up Bach's "Jesus, Joy of Man's Desiring" for the bridesmaids' entrance, and down the aisle they skim, those gorgeous women in midnight blue. Overawed by the crowd, the flower girls hang back until their mother nudges them along, and then they dash and skip, carrying their fronds of flowers like spears.
管风琴奏起巴赫的《基督，人们期望的快乐》，预示着伴娘即将进入大厅。这几个美丽的着深蓝色的女孩子轻快地穿过通道。花童们在人群面前畏缩着躲到了后边，在她们母亲的推搡下才蹦蹦跳跳地冲到前面，像抱幼苗一样抱着手中的花叶。
Finally, only the bride and the father of the bride remain in the vestibule. Eva whispers. "Remember, now, don't walk too fast." But how can I walk slowly while my heart races? I've forgotten the ballet step she tried to show me. I want events to pause so I can practice the step, so we can go canoeing once more in the wilderness, so we can sit on a boulder by the sea and talk over life's mysteries, so I can make up to my darling for anything she may have lacked in her girlhood. But events do not pause. The organ sounds the first few bars of Purcell's "Trumpet Voluntary," our cue to show ourselves. We move into the open doorway, and two hundred faces turn their lit eyes on us. Eva tilts her face up at me, quirks the corners of her lips into a tight smile, and says, "Here we go, Daddy." And so, lifting our feet in unison, we go.
最后，门厅里只剩下新娘和她的父亲还在走廊的这头了。伊娃对我耳语道：“记住，不要走得太快。”可是，我心跳得这么快，怎么能走得慢？我已经忘记了她试图教我的芭蕾舞步。我想让仪式暂停下来，这样，我可以练习舞步，我们可以再次去野外划独木舟，我们还可以坐在海边平滑的岩石上谈论生命的奥秘，让我有机会为我亲爱的女儿弥补一切童年时的缺憾。可是，仪式不会暂停。管风琴奏出普塞尔的《志愿者号角》，示意我们该人场了。我们走到大厅入口，200多张面孔转过来，闪亮的目光盯住了我们。伊娃微微将脸侧向我，扬起嘴角带出一丝笑容说道：“爸爸，我们开始吧。”就这样，我们一起迈着步子向前。
