“I'd never had any mail of my own, so that made me feel better. When I told my mother, she shook her head, saying, ‘Don't feel too bad, Viola, if she forgets; she'll have so many folks to write to.'
我还从来没有收到过写给我的任何信件,所以她的话让我感到好受了些。我把这事告诉母亲,她摇着头说:‘要是她忘了寄的话,维奥拉,不要太难受;她要给好多人写信'
“Two months later, I got a postcard with a picture of the Yangtze River, postmarked Chungking, China. ‘Are you still making me proud of you, my little brave one?' it asked. If anyone had given me a million dollars, it couldn't have made me more proud.
“两个月之后,我收到了一张印着长江图案的明信片,邮戳是中国重庆。‘你是不是依然让我为你感到骄傲,我勇敢的小姑娘?'上面这么写着。当时即使有人给我一百万元,也不会使我感到更值得夸耀的了。
Right after that, my parents broke up and we moved away from Morgantown. I raised my five brothers and sisters, married, and raised four children of my own.
“那以后不久,我父母分了手,我们搬离了摩根敦。我带大了五个弟妹,结了婚,又带大了自己的四个孩子。
“Goodness, we are almost there! I've talked too much. I do hope I haven't bored you.”
“天哪,我们就要到了!我讲得太多了。我真的希望没让你觉得厌烦。”
Then, for the first time, she turned to me and saw the tears in my eyes.
直到那时,她才第一次转过头来,看到了我的满眶眼泪。
“Would you like to see Lucy Wood's granddaughter?” I asked. My baby was waking from her nap. My heart was singing. The burning question of my childhood had been richly answered. At long last, I knew exactly what my mother had been like.
“您愿意看看露西·伍德的外孙女吗?”我问。我的孩子正好醒来。我的心在欢唱。我自幼就渴望弄清楚的问题,如今已有了完美的答案了。我终于了解到我母亲是怎样一个人了。