She took the fountain pen, ink and air mail notepaper and began to write.

 

拿出钢笔、墨水和信纸开始写信。

 

When she had finished, she read the letter aloud to the woman.

 

写完后为她大声读出来。

 

How did you know that was exactly what I wanted to say?

 

这正是我想说的话，您是怎么知道的呢?

 

I often sit and look at my boys' letters, just like you, without a clue about what to write.

 

我也和你一样，常常坐在那里看儿子的来信，完全不知道写什么好。

 

A few days later the woman returned with a friend, then another one and yet another one--they all had sons who fought in the war, and they all needed letters.

 

几天后，女人回来，带来一个朋友，后来又来一个，再一个……他们都有儿子在战场上奋战，都需要写信。

 

Mum had become the correspondent in our part of town. Sometimes she would write letters all day long.

 

妈妈变成了我们城镇的通讯员，有时她一整天都在写回信。

 

Mum always insisted that people signed their own letters, and the small woman with the grey hair asked mum to teach her how to do it.

 

母亲常常坚持让大家签上自己的名字。一位头发灰白的女人要母亲教她怎么签名。

 

I so much want to be able to write my own name so that my son can see it.

 

我真想亲手写下自己的名字，好让儿子可以看到。

 

Then mum held the woman's hand in hers and moved her hand over the paper again and again until she was able to do it without her help.

 

于是母亲手把手地教她在纸上一遍一遍书写，直到她自己可以签名。

 

After that day, when mum had written a letter for the woman, she signed it herself, and her face brightened up in a smile.

 

第二天，母亲帮那个女人写好信，由她亲自签名，女人的面容在微笑中变得灿烂了。

 

One day she came to us, and mum instantly knew what had happened. All hope had disappeared from her eyes.

 

有一天她来我家，眼里全无希望的光芒，母亲立刻明白了。

 

They stood hand in hand for a long time without saying a word.

 

两人握着手，久久无语。

 

Then mum said: We better go to church.

 

后来母亲说： 我们去教堂吧。

 

There are certain things in life so great that we cannot comprehend them.

 

生命中有些事情太深奥，我们无法理解。

 

When mum came back home, she couldn't get the red-haired boy out of her mind.

 

母亲回家后，一直记着那个红头发的小男孩。

 

After the war was over, mum put away the pen and paper.

 

战争结束后，母亲收起纸笔，

 

Finito, she said. But she was wrong.

 

都结束了。 可是她错了。

 

The women who had come to her for help in writing to their sons now came to her with letters from their relatives in Italy.

 

那个曾让母亲帮忙给儿子写信的女人又来了，带着意大利亲人的来信。

 

They also came to ask her for her help in getting American citizenship.

 

他们还让母亲帮忙帮他们的亲属申请入籍。

 

On one occasion mum admitted that she had always had a secret dream of writing a novel.

 

一次母亲承认她心里一直有一个愿望，就是要写一本小说。

 

Why didn't you? I asked. All people in this world are here with one particular purpose, she said.

 

为什么不写呢?我问。母亲试着解释她为何如此沉迷写信， 每个人来到这个世界都有一个目的。

 

Apparently, mine is to write letters. She tried to explain why it absorbed her so.

 

显然，我就是来写信的。

 

A letter unites people like nothing else. It can make them cry, it can make them laugh.

 

信无可替代地把人与人连在一起，让人笑，让人哭。

 

There is no caress more lovely and warm than a love letter, because it makes the world seem very small, and both sender and receiver become like kings in their own kingdoms.

 

一封情书比任何爱抚更令人觉得亲爱和温暖，因为它让世界变小，写信人和收信人都成为自己世界里的国王。

 

My dear, a letter is life itself!

 

亲爱的，信就是生命本身!

 

Today all mum's letters are lost.

 

今天，母亲所有的信已经遗失。

 

But those who got them still talk about her and cherish the memory of her letters in their hearts.

 

但是那些收到信的人仍在谈论她，并把有关信的记忆珍藏在心。