注册
正文 目录 文库目录 文库收藏 中文百科 Wiki百科
相约星期二|Tuesdays with Morrie

The Classroom|The Orientation

属类： 双语小说 【分类】世界名著 -[作者: 米奇-艾尔邦] 阅读：[11592]
《 字+字- 行+行- 页+页- 字+字- 行+行- 页+页- 》
-

阳光从餐厅的窗户射进来，照亮了房间里的硬木地板。我们在那儿已经谈了近两个小时了。常有电话打来，莫里让他的助手康尼去接。她把所有打电话来的人的名字记录在莫里那本黑封面的小登记簿上：朋友，默念师，讨论小组，想为某本杂志给他拍照的摄影师。显然，我不是唯一有兴趣访问他的人——“夜线”节目使他成了名人——但我还是对他有那么多的朋友而感到惊讶，甚至还有些忌妒。我回想起大学时那些围着我转的“哥们”，他们如今在哪里呢？

1
-

“你知道，米奇，因为我是个快死的人，所以人们才对我感兴趣。”

2
-

你一直是个有趣的人。

3
-

"啊，”莫里笑了。“你真好。”

4
-

不，我并不好，我心里在想。

5
-

"原因在于，”他说，“人们把我视为一座桥梁。我不像以前那样活着，但我又没有死……我类似于……介于两者之间。”

6
-

他咳嗽起来，随后又恢复了笑容，“我已经踏上了最后的旅程——人们要我告诉他们该怎样打点行装。”

7
-

电话铃又响了。

8
-

"莫里，你能接吗？”康尼问。

9
-

"我正在接待我的老朋友，”他说，“请他们待会儿再打来。”

10
-

我不知道他为什么待我这么热情。我几乎已经与十六年前离开了他的那个有出息的学生判若两人。如果没有“夜线”节目，莫里也许到死也不会再见到我。对此我没有任何正儿八经的理由，除了人人现在都会找的借口。我一心一意关心着自己的生活。我很忙。

11
-

我怎么啦？我问自己。莫里尖细、嘶哑的嗓音又把我带回到了大学时代。我那时视有钱为罪恶，衬衫加领带在我眼里简直如同枷锁，没有自由、貌似充实的生活——骑着摩托。沐着清风，游逛巴黎的街市或西藏的山峦——并不是有意义的生活。可我现在怎么啦？

12
-

八十年代开始了。九十年代开始了。死亡、疾病、肥胖、秃顶接踵而来。我是用许多梦想在换取数额更大的支票，只是我没有意识到而已。

13
-

莫里却又在谈美妙的大学生活了，仿佛我只是过了一个长长的假期。

14
-

"你有没有知心的朋友？”

15
-

"你为社区贡献过什么吗？”

16
-

"你对自己心安理得吗？”

17
-

"你想不想做一个富有人情味的人？”

18
-

我坐立不安起来，我的心绪被这些问题彻底搅乱了。我怎么会变得这样？我曾经发过誓，永远不为钱而工作，我会参加和平队①，去美丽的理想乐园生活。

19
-

①由志愿人员组成的美国政府代表机构，成立于1961年，去发展中国家提供技术服务。

20
-

然而，我在底特律一呆就是十年，受雇同一个报社，进出同一家银行，光顾同一家理发店。我已经三十有七，比做学生那会更有能耐，整天泡在电脑，调制解调器和手机里。我专门写有关富有的运动员的文章，他们一般对我这样的人也是很在意的。我在同龄人中已不再显得稚嫩，不用再穿灰色的无领长袖衫或叼着没有点燃的烟来作修饰。但我也不再有边吃鸡蛋色拉边长谈人生的机会。

21
-

我的每一天都很充实，然而，我在大部分时间里仍感到不满足。

22
-

我怎么啦？

23
-

"教练，”我突然记起了这个绰号。

24
-

莫里面露喜色，“是我。我还是你的教练。”

25
-

他大笑着继续吃他的东西，这顿饭他已经吃了四十分钟。我在观察他，他手的动作显得有点笨拙，好像刚刚在开始学用手。他不能用力地使用刀。他的手指在颤抖。每咬一口食物都得费很大的劲，然后再咀嚼好一阵子才咽下去，有时食物还会从嘴角漏出来，于是他得放下手里的东西，用餐巾纸擦一擦。他手腕到肘部的皮肤上布满了老人斑，而且松弛得像一根熬汤的鸡骨头上悬着的鸡皮。

26
-

有一阵子，我们俩就这么吃着东西。一个是患病的老者，一个是健康的年轻人，两人一起承受着房间里的寂静。我觉得这是一种令人难堪的寂静，然而感到难堪的似乎只有我。

27
-

"死亡，”莫里突然开口说，“是一件令人悲哀的事，米奇。可不幸地活着也同样令人悲哀。所以许多来探访我的人并不幸福。”

28
-

为什么？

29
-

"唔，首先，我们的文化并不让人觉得心安理得。我们在教授一些错误的东西。你需要十分的坚强才能说，如果这种文化没有用，就别去接受它。建立你自己的文化。但大多数人都做不到。他们要比我——即使在这样的处境里——更不幸。

30
-

"我也许就要死去，但我周围有爱我，关心我的人们。有多少人能有这个福份？”

31
-

他毫不自怜自哀的态度使我感到惊讶。莫里，一个不能再跳舞。游泳。洗澡和行走的人，一个再也不能去开门，不会自己擦干身子，甚至不能在床上翻身的人，怎么会对命运表现出如此的乐于接受？我望着他费劲地使用着叉子，好几次都没能叉起一块番茄——那情景真令人悲哀。然而我无法否认，坐在他面前能感受到一种神奇的宁静，就像当年校园里的清风拂去我心中的浮躁一般。

32
-

我瞄了一眼手表——习惯的驱使——时间已经不早了，我在想换一班飞机回去。这时莫里做了一件至今都令我挥之不去的事情。

33
-

"你知道我会怎么死吗？”他问。

34
-

我扬起了眉毛。

35
-

"我会窒息而死。是的，由于我有哮喘，我的肺将无法抵御疾病的侵入。它慢慢地往上跑。现在它已经侵蚀了我的腿。用不了多久它会侵蚀到我的手臂和手。当它侵蚀到我的肺部时………

36
-

他耸了耸肩膀。

37
-

"厖我就完蛋了。”

38
-

我不知道该说些什么，于是嗫嚅道，“嗯，你知道，我是说……你不会知道……”

39
-

莫里闭上了眼睛。“我知道，米奇。你不必害怕我的死。我有过美好的生活。我们都知道这只是迟早的事。我或许还有四五个月的时间。”

40
-

别这么说，我紧张地打断了他。没人能预料——

41
-

"我能预料，”他轻声说。“甚至还有一种测试的方法。是一位医生教我的。”

42
-

测试方法？

43
-

"吸几口气。”

44
-

我照他说的做了。

45
-

"现在再吸一次，但这次当你呼气时，看看你能数到几。”

46
-

我快速地边呼气边数数。“一、二、三、四、五、六、七、八……”吐完这口气时我数到了七十。

47
-

"很好，”莫里说，“你有一个健康的肺。现在看我做。”

48
-

他吸了口气，然后轻声、颤抖地开始数数。“一、二、三、四、五、六、七、八、九、十、十一、十二、十三、十四、十五、十六、十七、十八——”

49
-

他停住了，气喘吁吁。

50
-

"当医生第一次让我这么做的时候，我能数到二十三。现在是十八。”

51
-

他闭上了眼睛，摇摇头。“我的油箱已经空了。”

52
-

我有些紧张地做了个拍大腿的动作。该结束这个下午了。

53
-

"再回来看看你的老教授，”当我拥抱着和他道别时莫里说。我答应我会来的，这时我尽量不去想上一次我作一允诺的时刻。

54
-

我在学校的书店买了莫里为我们开出的书，比如《青春》、《个性和危机》、《我与你》、《分离的自我》等。这些书我以前从未听说过。

55
-

进大学前我不知道人际关系的学习也可以成为一门学术性课程。在我遇到莫里之前，我不相信这是真的。

56
-

他对书本的感情是那么真实且富有感染力。有时放学后，当教室里空无一人时，我们开始作认真的交谈。他问及我的生活，然后引用艾里奇•弗罗姆、马丁•布贝尔和埃立克•埃里克森的一些论述。他经常照搬他们的语录，然后再用自己的见解作注脚。只有在这种时候，我才意识到他是个真正的教授，而不是长辈。有一天下午，我在抱怨我这一代人的困惑：我分不清什么是我自己想做的，什么是别人期望你做的。

57
-

"我有没有对你说起过反向力？”他问。

58
-

反向力？

59
-

"生活是持续不断的前进和后退。你想做某一件事，可你叉注定要去做另一件事。你受到了伤害，可你知道你不该受伤害。你把某些事情视作理所当然，尽管你知道不该这么做。

60
-

"反向力，就像是橡皮筋上的移动。我们大多数人生活在它的中间。”

61
-

听上去像是摔跤比赛，我说。

62
-

"摔跤比赛。”莫里大芙起来。“是的，你可以对生活作类似的诠释。”

63
-

那么哪一方会赢？我问。

64
-

"哪一方会赢？”

65
-

他对我笑笑：眯缝的眼睛，不平整的牙齿。

66
-

"爱会赢。爱永远是胜者。”

67
-

As I turned the rental car onto Morrie’s street in West Newton, a quiet suburb of Boston, I had a cup of coffee in one hand and a cellular phone between my ear and shoulder. I was talking to a TV producer about a piece we were doing. My eyes jumped from the digital clock-my return flight was in a few hours-to the mailbox numbers on the tree-lined suburban street. The car radio was on, the all-news station. This was how I operated, five things at once.

1

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

"Roll back the tape," I said to the producer. "Let me hear that part again."

2

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

"Okay," he said. "It’s gonna take a second." Suddenly, I was upon the house. I pushed the brakes, spilling coffee in my lap. As the car stopped, I caught a glimpse of a large Japanese maple tree and three figures sitting near it in the driveway, a young man and a middleaged woman flanking a small old man in a wheelchair. Morrie.

3

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

At the sight of my old professor, I froze.

4

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

"Hello?" the producer said in my ear. "Did I lose you?... "

5

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

I had not seen him in sixteen years. His hair was thinner, nearly white, and his face was gaunt. I suddenly felt unprepared for this reunion-for one thing, I was stuck on the phone-and I hoped that he hadn’t noticed my arrival, so that I could drive around the block a few more times, finish my business, get mentally ready. But Morrie, this new, withered version of a man I had once known so well, was smiling at the car, hands folded in his lap, waiting for me to emerge.

6

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

"Hey?" the producer said again. "Are you there?" For all the time we’d spent together, for all the kindness and patience Morrie had shown me when I was young, I should have dropped the phone and jumped from the car, run and held him and kissed him hello. Instead, I killed the engine and sunk down off the seat, as if I were looking for something.

7

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

"Yeah, yeah, I’m here," I whispered, and continued my conversation with the TV producer until we were finished.

8

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

I did what I had become best at doing: I tended to my work, even while my dying professor waited on his front lawn. I am not proud of this, but that is what I did.

9

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

Now, five minutes later, Morrie was hugging me, his thinning hair rubbing against my cheek. I had told him I was searching for my keys, that’s what had taken me so long in the car, and I squeezed him tighter, as if I could crush my little lie. Although the spring sunshine was warm, he wore a windbreaker and his legs were covered by a blanket. He smelled faintly sour, the way people on medication sometimes do. With his face pressed close to mine, I could hear his labored breathing in my ear.

10

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

"My old friend," he whispered, "you’ve come back at last."

11

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

He rocked against me, not letting go, his hands reaching up for my elbows as I bent over him. I was surprised at such affection after all these years, but then, in the stone walls I had built between my present and my past, I had forgotten how close we once were. I remembered graduation day, the briefcase, his tears at my departure, and I swallowed because I knew, deep down, that I was no longer the good, gift-bearing student he remembered.

12

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

I only hoped that, for the next few hours, I could fool him.

13

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

Inside the house, we sat at a walnut dining room table, near a window that looked out on the neighbor’s house. Morrie fussed with his wheelchair, trying to get comfortable. As was his custom, he wanted to feed me, and I said all right. One of the helpers, a stout Italian woman named Connie, cut up bread and tomatoes and brought containers of chicken salad, hummus, and tabouli.

14

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

She also brought some pills. Morrie looked at them and sighed. His eyes were more sunken than I remembered them, and his cheekbones more pronounced. This gave him a harsher, older look-until he smiled, of course, and the sagging cheeks gathered up like curtains.

15

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

"Mitch," he said softly, "you know that I’m dying."

16

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

I knew.

17

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

"All right, then." Morrie swallowed the pills, put down the paper cup, inhaled deeply, then let it out. "Shall I tell you what it’s like?"

18

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

What it’s like? To die?

19

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

"Yes," he said.

20

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

Although I was unaware of it, our last class had just begun.

21

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

It is my freshman year. Morrie is older than most of the teachers, and I am younger than most of the students, having left high school a year early. To compensate for my youth on campus, I wear old gray sweatshirts and box in a local gym and walk around with an unlit cigarette in my mouth, even though I do not smoke. I drive a beat-up Mercury Cougar, with the windows down and the music up. I seek my identity in toughness-but it is Morrie’s softness that draws me, and because he does not look at me as a kid trying to be something more than I am, I relax.

22

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

I finish that first course with him and enroll for another. He is an easy marker; he does not much care for grades. One year, they say, during the Vietnam War, Morrie gave all his male students A’s to help them keep their student deferments.

23

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

I begin to call Morrie "Coach," the way I used to address my high school track coach. Morrie likes the nickname.

24

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

"Coach, " he says. "All right, I’ll be your coach. And you can be my player. You can play all the lovely parts of life that I’m too old for now."

25

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

Sometimes we eat together in the cafeteria. Morrie, to my delight, is even more of a slob than I am. He talks instead of chewing, laughs with his mouth open, delivers a passionate thought through a mouthful of egg salad, the little yellow pieces spewing from his teeth.

26

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
-

It cracks me up. The whole time I know him, I have two overwhelming desires: to hug him and to give him a napkin.

27

读书笔记

是否公开

我的读书笔记

仅对会员开放

网友的读书笔记

仅对会员开放
道德经
论语
孙子兵法
禮記
孟子
尚書
詩經
周易
简典
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

微信小程序

微信公众号

Email:

22745823@qq.com

联系站长：

QQ:22745823

机构翻译

地址翻译

人名翻译

译典登录

译典注册

译典说明

意见反馈

浙ICP备05023696号-8