2 young cousins runaway and experience freedom for a day

2 young cousins runaway¹ and experience freedom for a day

Transcript²

Forty years ago, Monica Jordan moved in with her cousin LaTonya Walker in Atlanta. They were raised by their moms in a house with plenty of rules. The cousins remember the day they ran away from home.

A MARTINEZ, HOST:

Time now for StoryCorps. Forty years ago, Monica Jordan moved in with her cousin, LaTonya, in Atlanta. That's when the cousins became more like sisters. They were raised by their moms in a house with plenty of rules. At StoryCorps, they remembered an afternoon when they were 7 and 9 and got a rare glimpse of freedom.

LATONYA WALKER: My mother was very, very strict. I was like, man, I just want to go outside and play.

MONICA JORDAN: Yeah. We couldn't do that. You know, our parents had to work. So for their peace of mind and for our safety, we could go no further than the front yard. Our friends would come over. And we would tell them that we were going to run away. And they never believed us.

WALKER: One particular morning, I wanted to go somewhere. And I asked my mom. And the answer, of course, was, no, as it was always. But I was tired of hearing no. And I was the one that decided³, hey, we're going to run away. So you and I went downstairs. We packed a backpack with some Oreos, some orange slices, some little sandwiches.

JORDAN: And, like, the really old-school bologna sandwiches with the little red ring that you had to pull off the sides of them. We left, like, 8 or something that morning. And we just started walking up the road. I do remember us going in the mall. And it was just one full day of playtime.

WALKER: And then, I remember we pulled out a map. And we was like, we're going to go to my dad's house. He was the fun dad. I could eat what I want, do what I want. And so as we were walking up this little ramp⁴...

JORDAN: There's these two men yelling⁵, hey, hey. You all can't go on that interstate. It's dangerous.

WALKER: It turns out that one of them actually knew my father.

JORDAN: They called him and took us back home. By this time, it was nighttime. When we pulled up, our friends drove up in their bikes. And they were like, oh, my God, you all did it, as we went into the house, knowing full well that we probably wouldn't see them for an entire week.

WALKER: That's when we got the stern⁶ words.

JORDAN: My mom just actually flat out asked me - what possessed⁷ us to (laughter) run away like that?

WALKER: (Laughter).

JORDAN: Like, what were you all thinking? And I always say, I was just following you, like (laughter)...

WALKER: Oh, Lord.

JORDAN: We did something really foolish. But I will have to admit - for, like, a half a second, I felt like we were heroes. Our parents raised us to be independent. And I realized that I've never been afraid to just go out and wander the world on my own.

WALKER: I think that's probably why I'm not married, because I don't want to have to answer to anybody (laughter). So yeah, that's what that meant to me, just living my life on my own terms, that same little fearless girl I still am today.

(SOUNDBITE OF BLUE DOT SESSIONS' "FEATHERSOFT")

MARTINEZ: That was LaTonya Walker and her cousin, Monica Jordan. Their StoryCorps conversation will be archived at the Library of Congress.

(SOUNDBITE OF BLUE DOT SESSIONS' "FEATHERSOFT")

1 runaway   

n.逃走的人，逃亡，亡命者；adj.逃亡的，逃走的

参考例句：

• The police have not found the runaway to date.警察迄今没抓到逃犯。
• He was praised for bringing up the runaway horse.他勒住了脱缰之马受到了表扬。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

4 ramp   

n.暴怒，斜坡，坡道；vi.作恐吓姿势，暴怒，加速；vt.加速

参考例句：

• That driver drove the car up the ramp.那司机将车开上了斜坡。
• The factory don't have that capacity to ramp up.这家工厂没有能力加速生产。

5 yelling   

v.叫喊，号叫，叫着说( yell的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The coach stood on the sidelines yelling instructions to the players. 教练站在场外，大声指挥运动员。
• He let off steam by yelling at a clerk. 他对一个职员大喊大叫，借以发泄怒气。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 stern   

adj.严厉的，严格的，严峻的；n.船尾

参考例句：

• The ship was in a blaze from stem to stern.整艘船从头到尾都着火了。
• The headmaster ruled the school with a stern discipline.校长治校严谨。

7 possessed   

adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的

参考例句：

• He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门。
• He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。