温馨夜读II PART3 10.The Remembrance of Lilacs

 

[00:00.83]10.The Remembrance of Lilacs

[00:05.63]The family had just moved to Rhode Island, and the young woman was feeling a little melancholy¹ on that Sunday in May.

[00:12.38]After all, it was Mother’s Day — and 800 miles separated her from her parents in Ohio.

[00:18.37]She had called her mother that morning to wish her a happy Mother’s Day,

[00:22.50]and her mother had mentioned the colorful yard filled with purple lilacs.

[00:26.97]Later, when she mentioned to her husband how she missed those lilacs, he popped up from his chair.

[00:33.06]“I know where we can find you all you want,” he said, “Get the kids and come on.”

[00:37.87]So off they went. Before they got halfway² up the hill, the fragrance³ of the lilacs drifted down to them,

[00:45.05]and the kids started running. Soon, the mother began running, too, until she reached the top.

[00:51.58]There were the towering lilac bushes, so laden⁴ with the huge flower clusters. 

[00:57.56]Carefully, the young woman chose a sprig here, another one there.

[01:02.13]Finally, they returned to their car for the trip home.

[01:05.51]When they were within three miles of home, she suddenly shouted to her husband, “Stop the car. Stop right here!”

[01:12.91]The man slammed on the brakes.

[01:15.09]The woman went out of the car and hurried up a nearby grassy⁵ slope with the lilacs still in her arms.

[01:21.63]At the top of the hill was a nursing home and the patients were outdoors strolling with relatives or sitting on the porch.

[01:28.48]The young woman went to the end of the porch, where an elderly patient was sitting in her wheelchair, alone, head bowed.

[01:36.33]Across the porch railing went the flowers, into the lap of the old woman.

[01:41.66]She lifted her head, and smiled.

[01:44.28]For a few moments, the two women chatted, both aglow⁶ with happiness, and then the young woman turned and ran back to her family.

[01:52.99]“Mom,” the kids asked, “who was that？Why did you give her our flowers?”

[01:58.54]The mother said she didn’t know the old woman.

[02:01.70]But it was Mother’s Day and she seemed so alone.

[02:05.07]“Besides,” she added, “I have all of you, and I still have my mother, even if she is far away.

[02:12.81]That woman needed those flowers more than I did.”

[02:16.09]The next day the husband purchased half a dozen young lilac bushes and planted them around their yard.

[02:22.43]I was that man. The young mother was, and is, my wife.

[02:27.02]Now, every Mother’s Day our kids gather purple bouquets⁷.

[02:31.62]And every year I remember that smile on a lonely old woman’s face, and the kindness that put the smile there.

1 melancholy   

n.忧郁，愁思；adj.令人感伤（沮丧）的，忧郁的

参考例句：

• All at once he fell into a state of profound melancholy.他立即陷入无尽的忧思之中。
• He felt melancholy after he failed the exam.这次考试没通过，他感到很郁闷。

2 halfway   

adj.中途的，不彻底的，部分的；adv.半路地，在中途，在半途

参考例句：

• We had got only halfway when it began to get dark.走到半路，天就黑了。
• In study the worst danger is give up halfway.在学习上，最忌讳的是有始无终。

3 fragrance   

n.芬芳，香味，香气

参考例句：

• The apple blossoms filled the air with their fragrance.苹果花使空气充满香味。
• The fragrance of lavender filled the room.房间里充满了薰衣草的香味。

4 laden   

adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的

参考例句：

• He is laden with heavy responsibility.他肩负重任。
• Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat.将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。

5 grassy   

adj.盖满草的；长满草的

参考例句：

• They sat and had their lunch on a grassy hillside.他们坐在长满草的山坡上吃午饭。
• Cattle move freely across the grassy plain.牛群自由自在地走过草原。

6 aglow   

adj.发亮的；发红的；adv.发亮地

参考例句：

• The garden is aglow with many flowers.园中百花盛开。
• The sky was aglow with the setting sun.天空因夕阳映照而发红光。

7 bouquets   

n.花束( bouquet的名词复数 )；（酒的）芳香

参考例句：

• The welcoming crowd waved their bouquets. 欢迎的群众摇动着花束。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• As the hero stepped off the platform, he was surrounded by several children with bouquets. 当英雄走下讲台时，已被几名手持花束的儿童围住了。 来自《简明英汉词典》