婚姻中最温馨的一刻

  Recently, I was foolish enough to take one of those magazine quizzes on "romantic marriage". "When was the last time your husband brought you flowers?" It asked.

  最近，我真是够傻的从杂志上选了一组关于"浪漫婚姻"的测试题自己测试了一下。它问道"你丈夫上次给你送花是在什么时候？"

　I thought about it, but I couldn't recall. Probably not since Hannah was born five years ago. Negative.

"When was the last time you and your husband took a bubble bath together?"

 What, the two of us? In the same tub? Negative.

   我想了想，但想不起来，大概5年前我生汉娜后就没再送了吧。答案没有送。

 "你和你丈夫上次在同一浴缸洗泡沫澡是在什么时候？"

 什么，我们两个？在同一浴缸？从来没有。

　"Has he recently written a poem or love letter for you?"

 Ed? Write a poem? Twenty years ago when he was single and travelling in Europe, his mom wrote a letter asking him to " at least send a post card telling me if you are dead or alive." A card came back:" Alive."

 No, he doesn't write love poems. Negative.

    "他最近给你写过情诗或情书吗？"

   埃德？写诗？20年前他还是单身汉时，有一次去欧洲旅行，一直未给家里写信，倒是他妈妈给他写了封信，叫他"至少寄张明信片回来告诉我你是死了还是活着。"他真寄了一张明信片回来，上面写道："活着。"

 没有，他没有给我写过情诗，没有。

"Imagine your husband in a romantic scene."

 Realizing by now that my marriage was in trouble, I raked my brain. But the only image that came to mind was of Ed, lying in bed with our five-year-old daughter when she had stomach flu.

　"想一下你和你丈夫之间富于浪漫色彩的情景。"

   这时我开始意识到我的婚姻有点不对劲，我绞尽脑汁，但却只有我5岁女儿胃不舒服患病时埃德同她躺在一起的情景

　That night I had been tired, so Ed moved me out of our bed, spread towels over the pillows and put a plastic bowl by Hannah's head. As he settled down to a broken night's sleep, I gratefully slipped off to another room to catch up on my sleep.

 This image is precious to me. But romantic?

　 那天晚上，我累了，埃德来替换我，他在枕头上铺好毛巾，在汉娜的头旁放一个塑料碗，一切都做完后才躺下来，断断续续地睡了一夜。我满怀感激地溜到另一房间补了补觉。

   这一情景于我很弥足珍贵，但浪漫吗？

　Digging deeper, I recalled when we were housebreaking a puppy, and just before Ed got home from work, the pup relieved herself on the couch. As Ed walked in, he got a barrage from me about how I hated his darn dog. He gave a barrage back and stormed out of the house, saying," You're a crazy woman. I'm going to the library for some peace and quiet."

　  继续往深处挖掘，我想起了训练小狗保持卫生习惯的事儿。就在埃德下班回家前小狗已在沙发椅里撒了尿，于是待他一回家，我便给了他一顿连珠炮般地责骂，说我是如何如何地讨厌那条该死的狗。面对我的责骂，他也回了我一通并气呼呼地一转身冲出家门，说:"你真是疯了，我要去图书馆找个和平与宁静的地方。"

　Later he returned with an armful of books and grin, " I'm not letting a crazy woman and a dog drive me out of my home," he said. I threw my arms around him, and we burst out laughing. Romantic? Not at all.

　不久后他却抱着一大堆书面带笑容地回来了，"我不会让一个疯女人和一条狗把我赶出家门，"他说。我伸出手臂，我们紧紧相拥，大笑起来。浪漫吗?一点也不。

　Oh, Ed always manages a box of candy on Valentine's Day. And I get a card, too. It usually has cartoons -- he doesn't go for lace and flowers. And I'm not awaiting his arrival in a hot tub full of pink bubbles.

  But when I think of him sound asleep clutching a plastic bowl for a sick child, he tugs on my heartstrings. When I bawl him out and he forgives me and laughs it off, I'm in his debt.

    喔，埃德总在情人节那天送给我一盒糖和一张贺卡。通常上面都是漫画--他不喜欢用彩带扎起来的花束。我也不会等他回来共浴在热气腾腾的粉红色泡沫的浴缸里。

   但是当我想到他于酣睡中，为了病中的孩子，仍紧紧抓住那个塑料碗，此情此景确实令我怦然心动。想到我将他怒骂出家门，他却一笑置之原谅了我时，我知道，我欠着他的情。

　婚姻中最温柔的时刻是奇特的，亦可能是不协调的那些瞬间。HallMark贺卡公司的人员不会将之印在卡上，但它们却足以使诗歌和情书相形见拙。By Mary Arnold 杜英 译