Jaime Alejandro Espinosa-Anabalon, 85: 'Bridge Over Troubled Water'

Jaime Alejandro Espinosa-Anabalon, 85: 'Bridge Over Troubled Water'

Transcript¹

In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic. Two years later, more than a million people have died in the United States from the disease². To put a face on this number and pay respect to the departed³, NPR asked our audience to share songs that reminded them of a loved one lost to COVID-19. What follows are individual stories of those who have passed, those mourning them and the songs that continue to unite them.

My dad had a lot of hardships. He lost his father when he was, like, 5 or something, and from there things got really bad financially. So for him, the song "Bridge Over Troubled Water" by Simon & Garfunkel kind of really resonated with him and his struggle through his life.

He was a mold-maker — molds⁴ for engine parts, or any other metal or even plastic parts. He got his training when he was living in Santiago, Chile, which is where he's from. He traveled throughout all of South America, so he never really stayed put. Hardships would always follow him in terms of being able to find work, being able to make a living, and he wasn't scared to get up and find something better.

Taking that kind of risk, going into something you don't know, is scary. But he could just as easily take that same thing and attach something really lovely and beautiful to it. It's like when you think about fruit: The fruit with all the bruises⁵ and the scars⁶, they're the ones that have the most sugar and sweetness and taste the best. Which is actually, really, what he instilled⁷ in me. —Jorge Espinosa, son

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 disease   

n.疾病，弊端

参考例句：

• The doctors are trying to stamp out the disease.医生正在尽力消灭这种疾病。
• He fought against the disease for a long time.他同疾病做了长时间的斗争。

3 departed   

a.(委婉的说法)已死的

参考例句：

• your dear departed brother 你挚爱的亡兄
• He departed from the text to tell an anecdote. 他偏离课文讲起了一则轶事。

4 molds   

n. 霉菌

参考例句：

• It provides a good medium for growth of molds. 这为霉菌的生长提供良好的培养基。
• The wind molds the waves. 风造成浪。

5 bruises   

n.瘀伤，伤痕，擦伤( bruise的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He was covered with bruises after falling off his bicycle. 他从自行车上摔了下来，摔得浑身伤痕。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The pear had bruises of dark spots. 这个梨子有碰伤的黑斑。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 scars   

n.伤痕( scar的名词复数 )；精神上的创伤；有损外观的地方；裸岩

参考例句：

• Slowly the war scars faded. 战争的创伤慢慢地消失了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• I've got scars from head to toe in tribute to my courage. 为了嘉奖我的胆量，我得到浑身的伤疤。 来自辞典例句

7 instilled   

v.逐渐使某人获得（某种可取的品质），逐步灌输( instill的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Nature has instilled in our minds an insatiable desire to see truth. 自然给我们心灵注入了永无休止的发现真理的欲望。 来自辞典例句
• I instilled the need for kindness into my children. 我不断向孩子们灌输仁慈的必要。 来自辞典例句