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发出内心的声音
添加时间:2016-06-29 20:49:29 浏览次数: 作者:未知
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  • Words from the Heart

    Most people need to hear those “three little words” — I love you. Once in a while, they hear them just in time.

    I met Connie the day she was admitted to the hospice ward1, where I worked as a volunteer. Her husband, Bill, stood nervously2 nearby as she was transferred3 from the gurney to the hospital bed. Although Connie was in the final stages of her fight against cancer, she was alert4 and cheerful. We got her settled in. I finished marking her name on all the hospital supplies she would be using, then asked if she needed anything.

    “Oh, yes,” she said, “would you please show me how to use the TV? I enjoy the soaps so much and I don’t want to get behind on what’s happening.” Connie was a romantic. She loved soap operas, romance5 novels and movies with a good love story. As we became acquainted6, she confided7 how frustrating8 it was to be married 32 years to a man who often called her “a silly woman”.

    “Oh, I know Bill loves me,” she said, “but he has never been one to say he loves me, or send cards to me.” She sighed and looked out the window at the trees in the courtyard. “I’d give anything if he’d say ‘I love you,’ but it’s just not in his nature.”

    Bill visited Connie every day. In the beginning, he sat next to the bed while she watched the soaps. Later, when she began sleeping more, he paced up and down the hallway outside her room. Soon, when she no longer watched television and had fewer waking moments, I began spending more of my volunteer time with Bill.

    He talked about having worked as a carpenter and how he liked to go fishing. He and Connie had no children, but they’d been enjoying retirement9 by traveling, until Connie got sick. Bill could not express his feelings about the fact that his wife was dying10.

    One day, over coffee in the cafeteria, I got him on the subject of women and how we need romance in our lives; how we love to get sentimental1 cards and love letters.

    “Do you tell Connie you love her?” I asked (knowing his answer), and he looked at me as if I was crazy.

    “I don’t have to,” he said. “She knows I do!”

    “I’m sure she knows,” I said, reaching over and touching his hands rough, carpenter’s hands that were gripping12 the cup as if it were the only thing he had to hang onto “but she needs to hear it, Bill. She needs to hear what she has meant to you all these years. Please think about it.”

    We walked back to Connie’s room. Bill disappeared inside, and I left to visit another patient. Later, I saw Bill sitting by the bed. He was holding Connie’s hand as she slept. The date was February 12.

    Two days later I walked down the hospice ward at noon. There stood Bill, leaning up against the wall in the hallway, staring at the floor. I already knew from the head nurse that Connie had died at 11 A.M.

    When Bill saw me, he allowed himself to come into my arms for a long time. His face was wet with tears and he was trembling. Finally, he leaned back against the wall and took a deep breath.

    “I have to say something,” he said. “I have to say how good I feel about telling her.” He stopped to blow his nose. “I thought a lot about what you said, and this morning I told her how much I loved her and loved being married to her. You shoulda2 seen her smile!”

    I went into the room to say my own good bye to Connie. There, on the bedside table, was a large Valentine card from Bill. You know, the sentimental11 kind that says, “To my wonderful wife I love you.”

    大多数人需要听到那“三个小字”——我爱你。有时他们就会在最需要的时候听到。

    我在康妮住进收容所病房的那天见到了她。我在那儿当义工。把她从轮床抬上病床时,她的丈夫比尔焦虑不安地站在旁边。虽然康妮处于和癌症搏斗的晚期,但她仍然神智清醒,精神愉快。我们把她安顿好。我在医院提供给她使用的所有用品上标上她的名字,然后问她是否需要什么。

    “啊,是的,”她说,“请告诉我怎么用电视好吗?我非常喜欢肥皂剧,想随时跟上进展情况。”康妮是个浪漫的人。她酷爱肥皂剧、浪漫小说和讲述美好爱情故事的电影。随着我们越来越熟,她向我吐露说,跟一个经常叫她“傻女人”的男人生活了32年有多么沮丧。

    “唉,我知道比尔爱我,”她说道,“可是他从来不说他爱我,也不给我寄贺卡。”她叹了口气,朝窗外庭院里的树望去。“如果他说声‘我爱你’,我愿意付出一切,可这根本不是他的性格。”

    比尔每天都来探望康妮。一开始,康妮看肥皂剧,他就坐在床旁。后来,她睡的时候多了,比尔就在屋外走廊里踱来踱去。不久,康妮不再看电视了,醒的时候也少了,我开始花更多的义工时间和比尔在一起。

    他谈到他一直是个木工,他多么喜欢钓鱼。他和康妮没有孩子,但他们四处旅游,享受着退休生活,直到康妮得病。对他妻子病危这一事实,比尔无法表达他的感受。

    一天,在自助餐厅喝咖啡时,我设法和比尔谈起女人这个话题,谈到生活中我们多么需要浪漫,多想收到充满柔情蜜意的卡片和情书。

    “你跟康妮说你爱她吗?”我明知故问。他瞧着我,就好像我有神经病。

    “我没有必要说,”他说道。“她知道我爱她!”

    “我肯定她知道,”我说。我伸出手,触摸着他那双木工粗糙的手。这双手紧握着杯子,似乎它是他需要依附的惟一东西——

    “可是她需要听到它,比尔。她需要听到所有这些年来她对你意味着什么。请你考虑考虑。”

    我们走回康妮的房间。比尔进了屋,我走开去看望另一个病人。后来,我看见比尔坐在床边。康妮入睡了,他握着她的一只手。那天是2月12日。

    两天后的中午时分,我顺着收容所病房过道向前走着。比尔站在那里,靠着墙,凝视着地面。护士长已经告诉我,康妮在上午11点故去了。

    比尔看见我后,让我拥抱了他许久。他满脸泪水,浑身颤抖。最后,他向后靠在墙上,深深地吸了一口气。

    “我有话非说不可,”他说道。“我得说,对她说出来,感觉真是好极了。”他停下来擤鼻子。“你说的话我想了很多;今天早上我对她说我多么爱她……我多么珍惜与她结为夫妻。你真该看看她的笑容!”

    我走进康妮的房间,亲自去和她告别 。我看见,床头桌上放着一张比尔给她的大大的情人节贺卡——就是那种充满柔情蜜意的贺卡,上面写着:“给我出色的妻子……我爱你。”

     5级    美文 


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    1 ward [wɔ:d] LhbwY   第7级
    n.守卫,监护,病房,行政区,由监护人或法院保护的人(尤指儿童);vt.守护,躲开
    参考例句:
    • The hospital has a medical ward and a surgical ward. 这家医院有内科病房和外科病房。
    • During the evening picnic, I'll carry a torch to ward off the bugs. 傍晚野餐时,我要点根火把,抵挡蚊虫。
    2 nervously ['nɜ:vəslɪ] tn6zFp   第8级
    adv.神情激动地,不安地
    参考例句:
    • He bit his lip nervously, trying not to cry. 他紧张地咬着唇,努力忍着不哭出来。
    • He paced nervously up and down on the platform. 他在站台上情绪不安地走来走去。
    3 transferred [t'rænsfɜ:d] 29e1c671e459bad68902ee6c4104162e   第5级
    转移,迁移( transfer的过去式和过去分词 ); 转让; 转移(感情); 改变
    参考例句:
    • The remaining twenty patients were transferred to another hospital. 其余的二十名病人被转送到另一家医院去了。
    • The farm has been transferred from father to son for generations. 这农场由父亲传给儿子,已传了好几代。
    4 alert [əˈlɜ:t] KK8yV   第6级
    adj.机警的,活泼的,机灵的;vt.使...警觉
    参考例句:
    • Drivers must be on the alert for traffic signals. 驾驶员必须密切注意交通信号。
    • The rabbit seems to be very alert all its life. 兔子似乎一生都小心翼翼,十分警觉。
    5 romance [rəʊˈmæns] KXGx1   第6级
    n.恋爱关系,浪漫气氛,爱情小说,传奇
    参考例句:
    • She wrote a romance about an artist's life in Tokyo. 她写了一个关于一位艺术家在东京生活的浪漫故事。
    • They tried to rekindle the flames of romance. 他们试图重燃爱火。
    6 acquainted [ə'kweintid] Jfgy5   第6级
    adj.对某事物熟悉的,对 某人认识的
    参考例句:
    • The students are already acquainted with the work of Shakespeare. 这些学生已经读过莎士比亚的著作。
    • I have heard about your friend but I'm not acquainted with him. 我听说过你的朋友,但同他不熟。
    7 confided [kənˈfaidid] 724f3f12e93e38bec4dda1e47c06c3b1   第7级
    v.吐露(秘密,心事等)( confide的过去式和过去分词 );(向某人)吐露(隐私、秘密等)
    参考例句:
    • She confided all her secrets to her best friend. 她向她最要好的朋友倾吐了自己所有的秘密。
    • He confided to me that he had spent five years in prison. 他私下向我透露,他蹲过五年监狱。 来自《简明英汉词典》
    8 frustrating [frʌˈstreɪtɪŋ] is9z54   第7级
    adj.产生挫折的,使人沮丧的,令人泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的现在分词 );挫败;使受挫折;令人沮丧
    参考例句:
    • It's frustrating to have to wait so long. 要等这么长时间,真令人懊恼。
    • It was a demeaning and ultimately frustrating experience. 那是一次有失颜面并且令人沮丧至极的经历。 来自《简明英汉词典》
    9 retirement [rɪˈtaɪəmənt] TWoxH   第7级
    n.退休,退职
    参考例句:
    • She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries. 她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
    • I have to put everything away for my retirement. 我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。
    10 dying [ˈdaɪɪŋ] 1rGx0   第5级
    adj.垂死的,临终的
    参考例句:
    • He was put in charge of the group by the dying leader. 他被临终的领导人任命为集团负责人。
    • She was shown into a small room, where there was a dying man. 她被领进了一间小屋子,那里有一个垂死的人。
    11 sentimental [ˌsentɪˈmentl] dDuzS   第7级
    adj.多愁善感的,感伤的
    参考例句:
    • She's a sentimental woman who believes marriage comes by destiny. 她是多愁善感的人,她相信姻缘命中注定。
    • We were deeply touched by the sentimental movie. 我们深深被那感伤的电影所感动。
    12 gripping [ˈgrɪpɪŋ] yrvzoI   第5级
    adj.吸引注意力的v.抓紧( grip的现在分词 );吸引;引起;使感兴趣
    参考例句:
    • a gripping Victorian melodrama 动人心弦的维多利亚时代情节剧
    • a gripping narrative of their journey up the Amazon 他们沿亚马孙河而上的扣人心弦的描述

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