We Are Family　我們是一家

We Are Family　我們是一家

◎ Jane Paddock

When I broke up with yet another boyfriend, this time after a three-year relationship, I decided it was time for me to face the facts—I was just not lucky in love. Yet even though I had given up on men, I wasn’t ready to go without love in my life, so I decided to get a dog.

當(dāng)我又與男朋友分手，結(jié)束了這段為期三年的感情后，我決定是時(shí)候面對(duì)現(xiàn)實(shí)了——我是愛(ài)情里面的不幸者。然而，盡管我已經(jīng)放棄了這段感情，但我還沒(méi)有準(zhǔn)備好下一段愛(ài)情，所以我決定養(yǎng)條小狗。

I found the perfect puppy after a careful search, and one hot June day, I brought home the little golden retriever puppy I’d named Cognac.

經(jīng)過(guò)我的仔細(xì)挑選，我找到了完美的小狗，在一個(gè)炎熱的六月天，我把這只小金毛獵犬帶回家，我叫它戈里亞。

Like all puppies, Cognac was adorable; immediately, I felt love and sweetness flowing in my life again. Why hadn’t I thought of this sooner?

像所有的小狗一樣，戈里亞非?？蓯?ài)，隨即，我感受到了愛(ài)的甜蜜在我的生命里流動(dòng)起來(lái)。為什么我沒(méi)有早點(diǎn)兒想到這些？

A few days later, I received a call from a man who’d gotten my name through a computer dating club. I had joined the club before the start of my last relationship and had never cancelled my membership. I hadn’t been very impressed with the people I’d met through the club’s services, but this guy, Brad, seemed nice enough on the phone, so when he asked me to meet him at the lake in a nearby park the next evening, I thought, I’ve got to walk Cognac anyway... sure, why not?

幾天后，我接到一個(gè)陌生人的電話(huà)，是通過(guò)網(wǎng)上約會(huì)俱樂(lè)部得到我名字的人。我是在我最近那次感情開(kāi)始前加入這個(gè)俱樂(lè)部的，也從來(lái)沒(méi)有取消我的會(huì)員資格。我對(duì)通過(guò)俱樂(lè)部認(rèn)識(shí)的人沒(méi)有很深刻的印象，但這個(gè)家伙，布拉德，講電話(huà)時(shí)聽(tīng)起來(lái)很熱情，所以當(dāng)他約我第二天晚上在附近一個(gè)公園的湖邊見(jiàn)面時(shí)，我想，我反正也要帶著戈里亞去公園散步……當(dāng)然，為什么不去呢？

Brad had said he was no longer in the service, but that he had been an air force tech sergeant. That wasn’t the kind of guy I usually dated, but I had liked his voice on the phone and decided to keep an open mind. When I got to the park for our date, I looked around for a blond man with a buzz cut and a military bearing. There was no one like that at the park—the only blond man was a gorgeous guy with hair almost to his shoulders. I thought, now why can’t a guy like that ask me out? Then the gorgeous guy walked over to me and said, “Are you Jan?”

布拉德表示，他曾經(jīng)是空軍技術(shù)軍士，但他現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)不服役了。他不是一般的男子，但我喜歡他在電話(huà)里的聲音，決定保持開(kāi)放的態(tài)度。當(dāng)我到公園赴約時(shí)，我環(huán)顧四周，一直在找剪裁時(shí)髦的軍裝和佩戴軍事勛章的金發(fā)男子。可是在公園里唯一一個(gè)金發(fā)男子是一個(gè)頭發(fā)幾乎到肩膀的英俊男子。我想，為什么這么帥的男人來(lái)找我約會(huì)？然后那帥氣的男子向我走來(lái)，說(shuō)：“是你嗎？珍？”

I immediately decided to give men another chance.

我立即決定要給他一個(gè)機(jī)會(huì)。

Cognac’s enthusiastic greeting made our introductions easy. He jumped up on Brad’s legs and ran in circles, wagging his whole body madly while trying to lick every part of Brad he could. We started to walk around the lake, and everybody we met fussed over the puppy. By the time we were halfway around the lake, Brad was holding Cognac’s leash, and he and I were chatting away like old friends.

戈里亞的熱烈歡迎使我們相處得很容易。它跳上布拉德的腿并且圍著他轉(zhuǎn)，瘋狂地?fù)u擺他的整個(gè)身體，試圖舔布拉德的每一部分。我們開(kāi)始在湖邊散步，每個(gè)人見(jiàn)到我們的小狗都大驚小怪。不知不覺(jué)我們已經(jīng)繞著湖走了大半圈了，布拉德拉著戈里亞，和我像是老朋友一樣聊個(gè)沒(méi)完。

At the end of our walk, we weren’t ready to say goodbye, so we found a cafe and picked an outdoor table so the puppy could be with us. From the very start, our relationship included Cognac.

散步結(jié)束后，我們都還沒(méi)準(zhǔn)備好說(shuō)再見(jiàn)，所以我們找到了一個(gè)咖啡館，為了方便與小狗在一起，我們選擇了坐在室外。從一開(kāi)始，我們的關(guān)系里面就包括了戈里亞。

Things went from good to better. One evening, three months later, Brad and I went to a restaurant that we liked for dinner. It was one of those places that have paper over the tablecloths and when they bring you the menu, they also bring crayons so that you can draw or write poetry while you’re waiting for your meal. Brad and I always played Hangman while we waited and that night, we were playing our usual game. As I guessed the letters and the words started to form themselves, a sentence emerged: Will you marry me?

我們之間的關(guān)系進(jìn)展得非常順利。三個(gè)月后的一天晚上，布拉德和我去一個(gè)餐廳吃晚飯，我們都很喜歡這里，因?yàn)樗谶@些地方的餐館中是有桌布紙的，當(dāng)服務(wù)員來(lái)點(diǎn)餐時(shí)，也會(huì)送來(lái)蠟筆，以便候餐的時(shí)間可以讓您畫(huà)畫(huà)或者是寫(xiě)詩(shī)。布拉德和我經(jīng)常會(huì)玩游戲，而那一天在我們等待用餐時(shí)，我們玩我們一貫玩的游戲。當(dāng)我猜出了全部的字母和單詞時(shí)，一個(gè)完整的句子出現(xiàn)了：你愿意嫁給我嗎？

I gasped and turned towards Brad, “Are you kidding?”

我深吸一口氣，轉(zhuǎn)向布拉德，“你開(kāi)玩笑吧？”

Brad looked nervous, but his eyes were shining and he smiled at me. “No, I’m not kidding—what’s your answer?”

布拉德神情緊張，但他的眼睛仍閃閃發(fā)光，對(duì)我笑了笑。“不，我不是在開(kāi)玩笑——你的答案呢？”

I took a crayon and wrote a huge YES across the paper.

我拿起蠟筆在紙上寫(xiě)了巨大的三個(gè)字，我愿意。

We sat grinning at each other for a few minutes and then began to plan our wedding.

我們坐著望著彼此微笑，然后開(kāi)始計(jì)劃我們的婚禮。

From the start, we were sure about two things: We wanted an outdoor wedding and we wanted Cognac to be a part of the ceremony.

從一開(kāi)始，我們就決定了兩件事情：我們希望在戶(hù)外舉行婚禮，我們想戈里亞也要作為結(jié)婚典禮上的嘉賓。

The day of the wedding dawned perfect and clear. Our families and friends gathered near the natural spring that we’d chosen as the spot where we would say our vows. My bridesmaids were dressed in rich purple gowns. I had on my wedding dress, and my heart felt as if it were overflowing with love and joy. Yet I was slightly apprehensive, wondering if we had lost our minds expecting Cognac, now ten months old and goofy in the way that only young dogs can be, to handle his responsibilities as ring bearer without creating chaos.

婚禮的那天清早，準(zhǔn)備完善后。我們的家人和朋友聚集在附近的天然溫泉，我們會(huì)在那個(gè)地方宣讀我們的誓言。我的伴娘們身著紫色婚紗，我壓抑不住自己的幸福和高興。然而，我有點(diǎn)兒擔(dān)心，不知道我們讓10個(gè)月大的戈里亞拿著戒指的方式，是不是愚蠢的方式，年輕的狗都是制造混亂的高手。

Cognac wore a white collar and a purple satin bow tie. My bridesmaids, who knew we had lost our minds having a dog at the ceremony, ran around with lint rollers, trying to keep their dark gowns free of golden hair—an almost impossible task.

戈里亞身穿白色衣領(lǐng)和一條紫色的緞面領(lǐng)結(jié)。我的伴娘，不知所措地看著它在儀式上跑來(lái)跑去，戈里亞試圖解開(kāi)它藏在黑暗袍里面的金色秀發(fā)——這似乎是個(gè)不可能完成的任務(wù)。

Cognac’s job was to carry a heart-shaped basket containing our rings to Brad. The basket held a heart-shaped pillow to which Brad had secured our rings with pieces of wire. This would prevent a disaster, in case Cognac decided to go for a swim in the spring, basket and all, instead of delivering it to Brad as we’d planned. As I began to walk to the aisle, in preparation for following the bridesmaids, I panicked. I realized I needed another hand! I held my bouquet in one hand, Cognac on his leash in the other, but I needed to hold the basket as well. If I gave the basket to Cognac to carry, he would take it as the signal to run to Brad, just as he’d been trained and I’d be dragged after him—spoiling the effect I’d had in my mind for my appearance on the scene.

戈里亞的任務(wù)是將心形花籃交給我們的布拉德?；@子里面心形枕頭上面有戒指。這樣就能阻止意外發(fā)生，一旦戈里亞決定去溫泉游泳，籃子和所有的東西都會(huì)弄丟，我們沒(méi)預(yù)想狗狗能乖乖地把戒指交到布拉德手中。當(dāng)我準(zhǔn)備和伴娘走到走道里，我害怕了。我意識(shí)到我需要幫忙！我一手牽著戈里亞，而且必須抓好籃子。而我手里還拿著花束。如果我把籃子完全交給戈里亞攜帶，它將作為信號(hào)把籃子帶到布拉德那里，就像訓(xùn)練時(shí)一樣，我會(huì)看好戈里亞，不能讓我想象中的壞情境發(fā)生。

Somehow I managed to get to the aisle, unhook Cognac’s leash and put the basket in his mouth. He was off like a shot, racing toward Brad with his beautiful golden ears streaming behind him, as if he was hot on the trail of a speeding rabbit. There was a swell of laughter as our guests appreciated the dedication of our furry ring-bearer.

不知道為什么，我沒(méi)有勇氣走過(guò)去。戈里亞像聽(tīng)到了發(fā)令聲一樣掙脫了繩索，叼著花籃朝布拉德跑去，我只看到了它金色的耳朵，它就像只超速兔子，客人們都笑出了聲。

When Cognac reached Brad, he dropped the basket at feet and, panting, looked up at Brad for approval. As Brad reached down to pick up the rings, a suddenly quiet Cognac solemnly raised his paw to meet my almost-husband’s hand—a canine “Way to go, Brad.”

當(dāng)戈里亞跑到布拉德面前，它放下籃子，氣喘吁吁，看著布拉德。布拉德彎腰拿起戒指，突然安靜下來(lái)的戈里亞伸出它的爪子指向我這邊——就像是在說(shuō)“去吧，布拉德”。

Our guests, dog-lovers and non-dog-lovers alike, were completely undone and to this day, when anyone talks about our wedding they may not remember what year it was or what I was wearing, but they always mention the dog’s pawshake.

我們的客人，不管是愛(ài)狗人士或是不愛(ài)的都一樣，已經(jīng)不太記得當(dāng)天我們的婚禮，他們可能不記得那一年我穿的是什么，但他們總是提到戈里亞的爪子。

For me, it was the perfect start to our new life together. Just the way I always dreamed it would be—Brad and me... and Cognac.

對(duì)我來(lái)說(shuō)，這是我們新生活一個(gè)完美的開(kāi)始。就像我總是魂?duì)繅?mèng)繞的一樣——布拉德和我以及戈里亞的生活。

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