3-30

30.

Meg came to London. September 2017. We were in Nott Cott. In the kitchen. Preparing dinner.

The whole cottage was filled with…love. Filled to overflowing¹. It even seemed to spill out the

open door, into the garden outside, a scrubby little patch of ground that no one had wanted, for a

very long time, but which Meg and I had slowly reclaimed². We’d raked and mown, planted and

watered, and many evenings we sat out there on a blanket, listening to classical music concerts

wafting³ over from the park. I told Meg about the garden just on the other side of our wall:

Mummy’s garden. Where Willy and I played as kids. It was now sealed off from us forever.

As my memories had once been.

Whose garden is it now? she asked.

It belongs to Princess Michael of Kent. And her Siamese cats. Mummy despised those cats.

As I smelt⁴ the garden, and considered this new life, cherished this new life, Meg was sitting on

the other side of the kitchen, scooping⁵ Wagamama from cartons into bowls. Without thinking I

blurted⁶ out: I don’t know, I just…

I had my back to her. I froze, mid-sentence, hesitant to go on, hesitant to turn around.

You don’t know what, Haz?

I just…

Yes?

I love you.

I listened for a response. There was none.

Now I could hear her, or feel her, walking towards me.

I turned and there she was, right before me.

I love you too, Haz.

The words had been on the tip of my tongue almost from the start, so in one sense they didn’t

feel particularly revelatory, or even necessary. Of course I loved her. Meg knew that, Meg could

see it, the whole world could. I loved her with all my heart as I’d never loved anyone before. And

yet saying it made everything real. Saying it set things in motion, automatically. Saying it was a

step.

It meant we now had a few more very big steps ahead.

Like…moving in together?

I asked if she’d consider moving to Britain, moving into Nott Cott with me.

We talked about all that would mean, and how it would work, and what she’d be giving up.

We talked about the logistics of winding⁷ down her life in Toronto. When, and how, and above

all…for what? Exactly?

I can’t just leave my show and quit my job to give it a shot. Would moving to Britain mean a

forever commitment?

Yes, I said. It would.

In that case, she said with a smile, yes.

We kissed, hugged, sat down to our supper.

I sighed. On the road, I thought.

But later, after she’d fallen asleep, I analyzed⁸ myself. A holdover from therapy, perhaps. I

realized that, mixed in with all my roiling⁹ emotions, there was a big streak¹⁰ of relief. She’d said it

back, the actual words, I love you, and it hadn’t been inevitable¹¹, it hadn’t been a formality. Part of

me, I couldn’t deny, had been braced¹² for the worst case. Haz, I’m sorry but I just don’t know if I

can do this…Part of me feared she’d bolt. Go back to Toronto, change her number. Heed¹³ the

advice of her girlfriends.

Is anyone worth this?

Part of me thought she’d be smart to do so.

1 overflowing   

n. 溢出物,溢流 adj. 充沛的，充满的 动词overflow的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• The stands were overflowing with farm and sideline products. 集市上农副产品非常丰富。
• The milk is overflowing. 牛奶溢出来了。

2 reclaimed   

adj.再生的；翻造的；收复的；回收的v.开拓( reclaim的过去式和过去分词 )；要求收回；从废料中回收（有用的材料）；挽救

参考例句：

• Many sufferers have been reclaimed from a dependence on alcohol. 许多嗜酒成癖的受害者已经被挽救过来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They reclaimed him from his evil ways. 他们把他从邪恶中挽救出来。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

3 wafting   

v.吹送，飘送，（使）浮动( waft的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• But that gentle fragrance was clearly wafting from the window. 但那股淡淡的香气，却分明是从母亲的窗户溢出的。 来自互联网
• The picture-like XueGuo, wafting dense flavor of Japan, gives us a kind of artistic enjoyment. 画一般的雪国，飘溢着浓郁的日本风情，给人以美的享受。 来自互联网

4 smelt   

v.熔解，熔炼；n.银白鱼，胡瓜鱼

参考例句：

• Tin is a comparatively easy metal to smelt.锡是比较容易熔化的金属。
• Darby was looking for a way to improve iron when he hit upon the idea of smelting it with coke instead of charcoal.达比一直在寻找改善铁质的方法，他猛然想到可以不用木炭熔炼，而改用焦炭。

5 scooping   

n.捞球v.抢先报道( scoop的现在分词 )；（敏捷地）抱起；抢先获得；用铲[勺]等挖（洞等）

参考例句：

• Heated ice cream scoop is used for scooping really cold ice cream. 加热的冰淇淋勺是用来舀非常凉的冰淇淋的。 来自互联网
• The scoop-up was the key phase during a scooping cycle. 3个区间中，铲取区间是整个作业循环的关键。 来自互联网

6 blurted   

v.突然说出，脱口而出( blurt的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She blurted it out before I could stop her. 我还没来得及制止，她已脱口而出。
• He blurted out the truth, that he committed the crime. 他不慎说出了真相，说是他犯了那个罪。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 winding   

n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈

参考例句：

• A winding lane led down towards the river.一条弯弯曲曲的小路通向河边。
• The winding trail caused us to lose our orientation.迂回曲折的小道使我们迷失了方向。

8 analyzed   

v.分析( analyze的过去式和过去分词 )；分解；解释；对…进行心理分析

参考例句：

• The doctors analyzed the blood sample for anemia. 医生们分析了贫血的血样。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The young man did not analyze the process of his captivation and enrapturement, for love to him was a mystery and could not be analyzed. 这年轻人没有分析自己蛊惑著迷的过程，因为对他来说，爱是个不可分析的迷。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 roiling   

v.搅混（液体）( roil的现在分词 )；使烦恼；使不安；使生气

参考例句：

• Now, all that could be seen was the roiling, lead--coloured sea, with its thunderously heaving waves. 狂风挟着暴雨如同弥漫大雾，排挞呼号，在海上恣意奔驶。 来自汉英文学 - 现代散文
• Rather, it is a roiling, seething cauldron of evanescent particles. 相反，它是一个不断翻滚、剧烈沸腾的大锅，内有逐渐消失的粒子。 来自互联网

10 streak   

n.条理，斑纹，倾向，少许，痕迹；v.加条纹，变成条纹，奔驰，快速移动

参考例句：

• The Indians used to streak their faces with paint.印第安人过去常用颜料在脸上涂条纹。
• Why did you streak the tree?你为什么在树上刻条纹？

11 inevitable   

adj.不可避免的，必然发生的

参考例句：

• Mary was wearing her inevitable large hat.玛丽戴着她总是戴的那顶大帽子。
• The defeat had inevitable consequences for British policy.战败对英国政策不可避免地产生了影响。

12 braced   

adj.拉牢的v.支住( brace的过去式和过去分词 )；撑牢；使自己站稳；振作起来

参考例句：

• They braced up the old house with balks of timber. 他们用梁木加固旧房子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The house has a wooden frame which is braced with brick. 这幢房子是木结构的砖瓦房。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 heed   

v.注意，留意；n.注意，留心

参考例句：

• You must take heed of what he has told.你要注意他所告诉的事。
• For the first time he had to pay heed to his appearance.这是他第一次非得注意自己的外表不可了。