美国国家公共电台 NPR 'I Only Knew Her As Mom': A Daughter Learns More From Her Late Mother's Best Friend

 

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

It's Friday morning, which is when we hear from StoryCorps. And on this Friday before Mother's Day, we hear from Sada Jackson, who lost her mother, Ileana, in 2016. Jackson came to StoryCorps in Kansas City, Mo., with her mom's best friend, Angela Morehead-Mugita.

SADA JACKSON: I just thought it'd be really cool to sit with one of her friends. Like, how often do you get to do that, to sit with your parents' friends and just ask questions and they don't get to jump in and say, don't tell her that?

ANGELA MOREHEAD-MUGITA: Right. Don't tell her what I said.

JACKSON: I said I want to know more about my mom as a woman because I only knew her as mom.

MOREHEAD-MUGITA: The part that most children don't see from their parents is the vulnerability. I think for the both of us, we became vaults² for each other. We called them vaults. She's like, OK, I need a vault¹ moment. As a matter of fact, she helped me when I had my son. I remember calling her the day I came home with Christopher. I sat on my couch. And I had all of these beautiful things from my baby shower. And I'm just bawling³.

I said, Ileana, what am I supposed to do now? And she was so clear. She's like, you're going to hold your baby. All that stuff in the living room is going to stay right here until you get yourself together. So that was the one thing about Ileana. She would never let me lose it.

JACKSON: I got emotional when you were telling this story because losing my mom to breast cancer when I was entering my eighth month of pregnancy⁴ and not having a chance to call her when I got home, it still bothers me. But at the same time, I heard her say, don't you be no sad momma for my grandbaby.

(LAUGHTER)

MOREHEAD-MUGITA: Oh, yeah. She's like, I need my daughter to be strong.

JACKSON: Yeah. And I'm feeling that. I'm feeling, like, her encouraging me, saying, now you're the mother. You're a woman.

MOREHEAD-MUGITA: Oh, yeah.

JACKSON: And when my baby looks up to me and I'm singing certain lullabies that she sang to me, I'll do like a little run. And I'll be like, that was a mom run.

MOREHEAD-MUGITA: That's your mother.

(LAUGHTER)

MOREHEAD-MUGITA: Yep. I'm watching every seed that your mother sowed in life manifest in you, in your son, in your marriage. And I remember when my mother had passed away, she came to the funeral. She hugged me. She whispered in my ear. And she said, you got this. You will not break down. You will walk in there and be the legacy⁵ that your mother left you. And so I say that to you. You will not lose it. You will not break down. And you will walk in the legacy that your mother left for you.

INSKEEP: Angela Morehead-Mugita and Sada Jackson for StoryCorps. Their interview will be archived with the others at the Library of Congress.

(SOUNDBITE OF VIENNA TENG'S "CITY HALL")

1 vault   

n.拱形圆顶，地窖，地下室

参考例句：

• The vault of this cathedral is very high.这座天主教堂的拱顶非常高。
• The old patrician was buried in the family vault.这位老贵族埋在家族的墓地里。

2 vaults   

n.拱顶( vault的名词复数 )；地下室；撑物跳高；墓穴

参考例句：

• It was deposited in the vaults of a bank. 它存在一家银行的保险库里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They think of viruses that infect an organization from the outside.They envision hackers breaking into their information vaults. 他们考虑来自外部的感染公司的病毒，他们设想黑客侵入到信息宝库中。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 bawling   

v.大叫，大喊( bawl的现在分词 )；放声大哭；大声叫出；叫卖（货物）

参考例句：

• We heard the dulcet tones of the sergeant, bawling at us to get on parade. 我们听到中士用“悦耳”的声音向我们大喊，让我们跟上队伍。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• "Why are you bawling at me? “你向我们吼啥子？ 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说

4 pregnancy   

n.怀孕，怀孕期

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕早期常有恶心的现象。
• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage.怀孕期吸烟会增加流产的危险。

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。