1.

when a child is born, a father is born. a mother is born, too of course, but at least for her it's a gradual process. body and soul, she has nine months to get used to what's happening. she becomes what's happening. but for even the best-prepared father, it happens all at once. on the other side of a plate-glass window, a nurse is holding up something roughly the size of a loaf of bread for him to see for the first time.

当一个孩子出生时，一位父亲随之诞生。当然一位母亲亦随之诞生，但这对于她来说只是一个渐进的过程。无论身体还是心灵，她都有九个月的时间去习惯。然后顺其自然。但对于一名就算做了万全准备的父亲来说，这也只是一瞬的事情。他站在窗子的另一端，一位护士抱着某个面包大小的东西给他瞧。--frederick buechner, 'whistling in the dark'

2.

my father was a statesman, i'm a political woman.

我父亲是一名政治家，我是一名从政的女人。

my father was a saint. i'm not.

我父亲是一个圣人。我不是。

--indira gandhi

3.

4 years: my daddy can do anything!

在我四岁时，我爸爸是万能的！

7 years: my dad knows a lot…a whole lot.

在我七岁时，我爸懂很多的……很多很多。

8 years: my father does not know quite everything.

在我八岁时，我父亲并非了解所有事情。

12 years: oh well, naturally father does not know that either.

在我十二岁时，好吧，我父亲也不知道那件事很正常。

14 years: oh, father? he is hopelessly old-fashioned.

在我十四岁时，哦，我父亲？他已经过时的没救了。

21 years: oh, that man-he is out of date!

在我二十一岁时，那男人已经土的没边了！

25 years: he knows a little bit about it, but not much.

在我二十五岁时，他其实懂一些，但不是很多。

30 years: i must find out what dad thinks about it.

在我三十岁时，我必须问问我爸的看法。

35 years: before we decide, we will get dad's idea first.

在我三十五岁时，我们拍板前得征求一下爸的意见。

50 years: what would dad have thought about that?

在我五十岁时，这事我爸会怎么看呢？

60 years: my dad knew literally¹ everything!

在我六十岁时，我爸几乎懂得一切！

65 years: i wish i could talk it over with dad once more.

在我六十五岁时，我多希望还能跟爸好好谈一次。

4.

my father always used to say that when you die, if you've got five real friends, then you've had a great life.

我父亲总在说：“当你死时，如果你已拥有五个真正的朋友，那么你才算拥有很棒的人生。”

--lee iacocca

5.

it is easier for a father to have children than for children to have a real father.

“父亲拥有孩子”比“孩子得到一位真正的父亲”简单的多。

--pope john xxiii

6.

father, whom i murdered every night but one,

父亲，除了某次我每次做梦都想灭掉的人，

that one, when your death murdered me.

那次，你的死讯几乎让我覆灭。

--howard moss², elegy³ for my father (l. 1-2)

7.

better to be driven out from among men than to be disliked of children.

如果做不到让孩子喜欢，还是不要做男人为好。

--richard henry dana

8.

one night a father overheard his son pray: dear god, make me the kind of man my daddy is.

某晚一位父亲听到自己的儿子祈祷：“上帝啊，让我变成我爸爸那样的男人吧。”