一天晚上，在一条双车道的乡间小路上，一位男子正驾车回家。在这个中西部的小村落，生活节奏犹如他那辆破旧了的旁蒂克车一样缓慢，但他还是对未来充满了希望。自从利维斯牛仔裤工厂倒闭后，他就没了工作。冬天渐渐来临，生活的艰辛犹如寒流一般侵袭着这个家庭。

It was a lonely road. Not very many people had a reason to be on it, unless they were leaving. Most of his friends had already left. They had families to feed and dreams to fulfill. But he stayed on. After all, this was where he buried his mother and father. He was born here and knew the country.

路上一个人也没有，这个时候没人会经过这条路，除非他们是远走他乡。他的许多朋友都离开了，他们要养家糊口，要实现梦想，但他留了下来。毕竟，这里是他出生的地方，也是他安葬父母让他们安息的地方，他对这里了如指掌。

He could go down this road blind, and tell you what was on either side, and with his headlights not working, that came in handy. It was starting to get dark and light snow flurries were coming down. He'd better get a move on.

即使他闭着眼睛开车，即使车的前灯已经坏掉，他也能信手拈来地告诉你路两边的景色。天色暗了下来，开始飘起雪花，他的赶快回家。

You know, he almost didn't see the old lady, stranded on the side of the road. But even in the dim light of day, he could see she needed help. So he pulled up in front of her Mercedes and got out. His Pontiac was still sputtering when he approached her.

他差点没看到滞留在路边的哪位上了年纪的老太太，即使天色昏暗，他也看得出来她需要帮助。他在她的梅赛德斯车前停了下来，下了车。他都走到他面前了，他那辆旁蒂车还在那儿呼哧呼哧的喘气呢。

Even with the smile on his face, she was worried. No one had stopped to help for the last hour or so. Was he going to hurt her? He didn't look safe, he looked poor and hungry. He could see that she was frightened, standing out there in the cold. He knew how she felt. It was that chill that only fear can put in you. He said, "I'm here to help you ma'am. Why don't you wait in the car where it's warm. By the way, my name is Joe."

尽管看到他脸上挂着微笑，她还是很担忧。刚才的一个多小时里一直没有人停下来帮忙。他会伤害她吗？他让人感觉不安全，因为它看上去又穷又饿。他看得出来，她站在冷风中，惊恐万分。他知道他在 想什么，这么冷的天，人心中就只剩下恐惧了。他说：“女士，我是来帮助你的，你在暖和的车里等着吧。顺便说一下，我叫比尔。

Well, all she had was a flat tire, but for an old lady, that was bad enough. Joe crawled under the car looking for a place to put the jack, skinning his knuckles a time or two. Soon he was able to change the tire. But he had to get dirty and his hands hurt. As he was tightening up the lug nuts, she rolled down her window and began to talk to him. She told him that she was from St. Louis and was only just passing through. She couldn't thank him enough for coming to her aid. Joe just smiled as he closed her trunk.

她的车不过是爆胎了，但对于一位上了年纪的老太太来说，这已经足够糟糕了。比尔钻到车子底下，找地方放好了千斤顶，他不小心檫破了手上的几块皮。一会儿，轮胎换好了，但他却弄脏了衣服，擦破了手。正当他把螺丝拧你时，老太太摇下了车窗的玻璃，跟他聊了起来。她说她从圣.路易斯来只是路过这里，她对他来帮助感激不尽。比尔只是笑笑，盖上了车的后备箱。

She asked him how much she owed him. Any amount would have been all right with her. She had already imagined all the awful things that could have happened had he not stopped. Joe never thought twice about the money. This was not a job to him. This was helping someone in need, and God knows there were plenty who had given him a hand in the past. He had lived his whole life that way, and it never occurred to him to act any other way. He told her that if she really wanted to pay him back, the next time she saw someone who needed help, she could give that person the assistance that they needed, and Joe added "...and think of me."

她问他该付多少钱，多少钱都可以。要不是他停下来帮忙，她知道要发生什么可怕的事情。比尔没有在意钱的问题，这不是他的工作，只是给有困难的人帮助罢了，过去有很多人也曾给他以帮助……他就 是这么过来的，也从没有想过不这么做会怎样。他告诉她，如果他真想报答他，等下次有人需要帮忙的时候，她可以给他们帮助，比尔补充说：“那时，请想起 我。”

He waited until she started her car and drove off. It had been a cold and depressing day, but he felt good as he headed for home, disappearing into the twilight. A few miles down the road the lady saw a small cafe. She went in to grab a bite to eat, and take the chill off before she made the last leg of her trip home. It was a dingy looking restaurant. Outside were two old gas pumps. The whole scene was unfamiliar to her. The cash register was like the telephone of an out of work actor, it didn't ring much.

他一直等到她发动车子离开，天特别冷，阴沉沉的，但他感觉很开心。他驾车向家里驶去，消失在黑暗中。开了几公里路，老太太看到一家小咖啡店，她准备进去吃点东西，暖暖身子，然后再开车回 家。店里光线阴暗，门外有两个旧的油泵。整个环境显得很萧条，她很少见过这样的咖啡店，收银机就像过气演员家里的电话机，响不了几下。

Her waitress came over and brought a clean towel to wipe her wet hair. She had a sweet smile, one that even being on her feet for the whole day couldn't erase. The lady noticed that the waitress was nearly eight months pregnant, but she never let the strain and aches change her attitude. The old lady wondered how someone who had so little could be so giving to a stranger. Then she remembered Joe.

女服务员拿了一条毛巾，让她把湿漉漉 的头发擦干。女服务员面带甜甜的微笑，即使在店里站了一天了，她也还是微笑着。老太太发觉她差不多有8个月的身孕， 但她并没有让疲惫与疼痛改变她待人接物的态度。老太太惊讶于在这样惨淡的情况下，他还能给与陌生人这样的温暖。她想起了比尔。

After the lady finished her meal, and the waitress went to get her change from a hundred dollar bill, the lady slipped right out the door. She was gone by the time the waitress came back. She wondered where the lady could be, and then she noticed something written on a napkin. There were tears in her eyes, when she read what the lady wrote. It said, "You don't owe me a thing, I've been there too. Someone once helped me out, the way I'm helping you. If you really want to pay me back, here's what you do. Don't let the chain of love end with you."

老太太吃完饭后，女服务员去给她的百元大钞找零。当女服务员回来时，老太太已经走了，女服务员正在奇怪，忽然看到餐巾上写了几行字，下面有4张100元面额的钞票。读者上面的话语，泪水模糊 了她的双眼。纸巾上写道；“你不欠我什么，我也遇到过这样的事。有人曾帮助过我，就像我帮助你一样。假如你真的要报答我，你就这么做：不要让这条爱之链在 你这里断掉。

Well, there were tables to clear, sugar bowls to fill, and people to serve, but the waitress made it through another day. That night when she got home from work and climbed into bed, she was thinking about the money and what the lady had written. How could she have known how much she and her husband needed it? With the baby due next month, it was going to be hard. She knew how worried her husband was, and as he lay sleeping next to her, she gave him a soft kiss and whispered soft and low, "Everything's gonna be all right. I love you, Joe. 

喔，桌子要清理，糖罐要加满，客人要服务，但是女服务员有应付过了一天。那天下班回到家里，躺在床上时，他想着这笔钱，想着老太太写的话。老太太怎么知道她和她的丈夫继续这笔钱呢？下个月孩 子就要出生，日子越来越艰难了。她知道她的丈夫有多担心，她在他旁边躺了下来，轻轻地吻了吻他，小声地说：“一切都会好的，我爱你，比尔。”