When Dad played his fiddle, the world became a bright star. To him violin was an instrument of faith, hope and charity. At least a thousand times, my mother said, “Your papa would play his fiddle if the world was about to blow up.” 

　　每当爸爸拉起小提琴,世界就变成一颗闪亮的星星。对爸爸来说,小提琴是一种能带来信念、希望和善意的乐器。“即使世界下一秒就要灰飞湮灭,你爸爸还是会拉他的小提琴。”这样的话,妈妈曾说过不下一千次。

 

　　And once Dad came about as close to that as could ever be possible. 

　　有一回,爸爸几近要面临那可能发生的一幕。

 

　　Everything on Nubbin Ridge—and on a majority of the small farms in Texas—was built around cotton as the money crop. But in the early years of the century, the 3)boll weevil began 4)devastating the cotton farms in the south. 

　　纽宾山,以及德克萨斯州大部分的小农场的一切,都是建立在棉花这种经济作物上的。然而在上世纪初期,棉铃象甲开始侵嗜美国南部的棉花农场。