《牧羊少年奇幻之旅》 69 少女希望她的男人是自由的

The boy was sad as he left her that day.

男孩同法蒂玛分手之后，无比郁闷。

He thought of all the married shepherds he had known.

他想起了他认识的许多已婚牧羊人。

They had a difficult time convincing their wives that they had to go off into distant fields.

牧羊人必须到野外去放羊，因此很难让他们的妻子安心。

Love required them to stay with the people they loved.

爱情要求相爱的人厮守在一起。

He told Fatima that, at their next meeting.

第二天，他把这些想法告诉了法蒂玛。

"The desert takes our men from us, and they don't always return," she said.

“沙漠带走我们的男人，并不总是把他们再带回来。”她说，

"We know that, and we are used to it.

“我们习惯了这种事。

Those who don't return become a part of the clouds, a part of the animals that hide in the ravines and of the water that comes from the earth.

那些没回来的男人活在不下雨的云彩里，活在栖身石缝中的动物身上，活在大地慷慨吐出的泉水之中。

They become a part of everything ... they become the Soul of the World."

他们融入万物，变成了世界之魂。”

"Some do come back. And then the other women are happy because they believe that their men may one day return, as well.

“有些男人回来了。于是所有的女人都非常髙兴，因为其他女人等待的男人也有可能在某一天回来。

I used to look at those women and envy them their happiness. Now, I too will be one of the women who wait."

以前我看着那些女人，很羡慕她们幸福的样子。如今我也有了期盼。”

"I'm a desert woman, and I'm proud of that. I want my husband to wander as free as the wind that shapes the dunes¹.

“作为沙漠中的女人，我为此而骄傲。希望我的男人像移动沙丘的风一样自由。

And, if I have to, I will accept the fact that he has become a part of the clouds, and the animals and the water of the desert."

也希望能在云彩中、动物身上和泉水里看到我的男人。”

The boy went to look for the Englishman. He wanted to tell him about Fatima.

男孩去找英国人，想把自己和法蒂玛的事告诉他。

He was surprised when he saw that the Englishman had built himself a furnace outside his tent.

当他看到英国人在自己的帐篷边上建了个小炉灶，感到非常意外。

It was a strange furnace, fueled by firewood, with a transparent² flask³ heating on top.

那炉灶十分古怪，上面还放着一只透明的玻璃瓶。

As the Englishman stared out at the desert, his eyes seemed brighter than they had when he was reading his books.

英国人正一面望着沙漠，一面往炉灶里加木柴。他的眼睛比以前埋头读书的时候明亮多了。

1 dunes   

沙丘( dune的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The boy galloped over the dunes barefoot. 那男孩光着脚在沙丘间飞跑。
• 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。

2 transparent   

adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的

参考例句：

• The water is so transparent that we can see the fishes swimming.水清澈透明，可以看到鱼儿游来游去。
• The window glass is transparent.窗玻璃是透明的。

3 flask   

n.瓶，火药筒，砂箱

参考例句：

• There is some deposit in the bottom of the flask.这只烧杯的底部有些沉淀物。
• He took out a metal flask from a canvas bag.他从帆布包里拿出一个金属瓶子。