美国国家公共电台 NPR A Mother-Daughter Bond: 'We Have One Heart, You And I'

 

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

And that music means it is time for StoryCorps on this Friday before Mother's Day. Today, a daughter who wanted to thank her mom for not giving up on her. In 1972, Sarah Churchill gave birth to her third child, a daughter named Yomi. She was born with a rare genetic¹ disorder² that causes bones to break under the slightest pressure. Doctors said her future was grim.

Well, Yomi is about to celebrate her 45th birthday. At StoryCorps, her mom told her about the night she was born.

SARAH CHURCHILL: Your skull³ was fractured, your arms, your ribs⁴, your legs. And they said that you would probably during the night, so the best thing would be to leave you at the hospital. But there was no way that I was going to leave you there.

And they had a rocking chair. And I would sit there and hold you. And I remember our hearts touched each other. I used to always say we have one heart, you and I.

YOMI WRONG: So what was it like caring for me throughout the years?

CHURCHILL: Well, I remember giving you a bath. And you turned your arm, and I heard it.

WRONG: The bone snap?

CHURCHILL: Yeah. And you were crying. I'm crying.

WRONG: I used to keep track of my fractures but then they just got out of control. I would fall, or I remember one time one of my sisters dropped an orange on me and that broke something. I mean, you could look at me too hard and I would break. So I had my down periods, but I don't always have to articulate every single thing because you get it. You understand.

You know, one of my regrets is that I didn't have my own children. And I think one of the biggest desires for wanting to mother is to be able to carry on this legacy⁵ of love that you started with me. You tell me often that you believe I picked you.

CHURCHILL: I think children come as a gift to their parent.

WRONG: I don't know if I've ever told you this, but I also feel like you picked me. If you had walked away and left me there when I was born, nobody would have looked askance.

CHURCHILL: But I felt that you were a part of me. So I knew that I made the right decision.

WRONG: And I've always admired you for that.

CHURCHILL: It was my honor.

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GREENE: Sarah Churchill interviewed by her daughter Yomi Wrong at StoryCorps in San Francisco. And Yomi currently works to make sure hospitals in Northern California are complying with the Americans With Disabilities Act. Their interview will be archived in the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress and also featured on the StoryCorps podcast.

1 genetic   

adj.遗传的，遗传学的

参考例句：

• It's very difficult to treat genetic diseases.遗传性疾病治疗起来很困难。
• Each daughter cell can receive a full complement of the genetic information.每个子细胞可以收到遗传信息的一个完全补偿物。

2 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

3 skull   

n.头骨；颅骨

参考例句：

• The skull bones fuse between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five.头骨在15至25岁之间长合。
• He fell out of the window and cracked his skull.他从窗子摔了出去，跌裂了颅骨。

4 ribs   

n.肋骨( rib的名词复数 )；（船或屋顶等的）肋拱；肋骨状的东西；（织物的）凸条花纹

参考例句：

• He suffered cracked ribs and bruising. 他断了肋骨还有挫伤。
• Make a small incision below the ribs. 在肋骨下方切开一个小口。

5 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。