That Time My Daughter Talked to a Stranger

⊙ By Tara Wood翻译：思苇

That Time My Daughter Talked to a Stranger

那一天，女儿伸出了友谊之手

⊙ By Tara Wood翻译：思苇

一个是4岁的幼儿园小妹妹，一个是82岁的孤独老人，看似毫无交集的两人，却在一次购物中一见如故，成了互相关怀的忘年交。小姑娘的妈妈塔拉将这个故事分享到网上，没想到全球大小媒体纷纷转发，一夜爆红——很多时候，感染人心的正能量随处可见，它就藏在一句平常的问候或者一朵美丽的鲜花之中……

The day before my daughter Norah’s fourth birthday, she somehow foreshadowed[预示]a lovely event.

On our way back from preschool[幼儿园], she said, “I like old peoples the best ’cause they walk slow like I walk slow, and they has soft skin like I has soft skin. I’m gonna love’em all up before they are died.”

I had no idea how much she really meant it.

The following day, we went to the grocery store[杂货店]to buy cupcakes for the whole family. While I was busy picking up bottles and cans, Norah suddenly noticed something and excitedly proclaiming[宣告], “Hi old person! It’s my birthday today!”

The man she addressed[对……说话]to was elderly and stone-faced. Before I could“Shush” Norah or ask the Earth to swallow me whole, he stopped and turned to her. To my surprise, his face softened[变柔和], “Well hello little lady! And how old are you today?”

They chatted for a few minutes. Norah asked me, “Can I take a picture with the old man for my birthday?” His expression rapidly changed from confused to stunned[目瞪口呆]to delighted.

“A photo? With me?” he asked.

“Yes, sir, for my birthday!” Norah pleaded[恳求].

And so they did. I thanked the old man, Mr. Dan, for taking the time with us. He said,“No, thank YOU. This has been the best day I’ve had in a long time. You’ve made me so happy, Miss Norah.”

Later, I was told that Mr. Dan’s wife had passed away and he had been lonely since. Norah really worried about her new friend, so we decided to make a visit.

My talkative[饶舌的], constantly-moving girl ended up having a really good time in Mr. Dan’s cozy[舒适的], tidy house. As we walked him to his front door after lunch, he picked a red rose by his porch, carefully cut every thorn[棘]off, and handed it to his little friend.She keeps that rose, now dry as a bone[干透], in a Ziploc注bag under her pillow.

Seventy-eight years separate these two people in age, yet they enjoy each other’s company. Norah and I have made a promise to see Mr. Dan every week—even if it’s only for fifteen minutes or a quick hug. I’ve invited Mr. Dan to spend the New Year with us. He’s part of our family now, and just like Norah said, “We’re gonna love him all up.”

Sometimes, a small talk with kindness can really lead to a beautiful new beginning. Give it a try.

注：密保诺，美国家用产品巨头——庄臣父子公司旗下品牌，以密实袋系列产品著称。

My talkative, constantly-moving girl ended up having a really good time in Mr. Dan’s cozy, tidy house.

动词词组end up最常见的意思就是“结束，告终”，表示事情的发展以词组引出的内容而告终，后面常跟名词或名词性结构，如：Somewhat to his own surprise, he ended up designing the whole product. （结果他把整个产品都设计出来了，连他自己都有点惊讶。）

在我的女儿诺拉四岁生日前一天，她仿佛知道接下来会发生的温馨故事。

从幼儿园回家的路上，她说：“我最喜欢老人了，因为他们像我一样，走路慢悠悠的，皮肤软软的。我要在他们去世之前好好地爱他们。”

我当时并没有意识到她是认真的。

第二天，我们去杂货店给全家人买纸杯蛋糕。我在忙着挑选各种瓶瓶罐罐，诺拉突然注意到了什么，她兴奋地喊了起来：“老人家你好啊！今天是我的生日！”

诺拉打招呼的是一位面无表情的老人。我还没来得及让她赶紧闭嘴，或者求大地赶快开个洞让我钻进去，他已经停下了脚步，转头看着她。让我吃惊的是，他的脸色顿时变得非常柔和：“喔，小姑娘你好啊！你今天多少岁啦？”

他们俩聊了一会儿，诺拉问我说：“我能和这位老人家来个生日合影吗？”老人刚开始还是一脸困惑，一下子变得目瞪口呆，又从震惊变成了快乐。

“合影？和我吗？”他问道。

“是的，先生，生日合影！”诺拉恳求着。

于是他们一起合影了，我向这位丹先生表示感谢，谢谢他肯陪我们闹腾，他却回答道：“不，该是我谢谢你们。我很久很久没像今天这么开心了。你让我太高兴了，诺拉小姐。”

后来，我才知道丹先生自从妻子去世以来一直孤零零的。诺拉很担心她的新朋友，所以我们决定登门拜访。

结果我那个喋喋不休、活泼好动的女儿在丹先生舒适整洁的小屋里玩得非常开心。用过午饭之后，我们陪着丹先生走到门口。他在门廊边摘了一朵红玫瑰，细心地剪掉所有的棘刺，然后送给他的小朋友。那朵玫瑰如今早已干枯，诺拉用密实袋将它装起来，压在自己的枕头底下。

这两个人相差78岁，但他们都很喜欢和对方一起玩。诺拉和我约好每周都要去探望丹先生——哪怕只是15分钟的短暂会面，或者简单地拥抱一下。我邀请老先生和我们一起过新年，他现在已经是这个家的一分子了，就像诺拉说的那样：“我们要一起好好爱他。”

有时候，一次友善的闲谈确实会带来一个美好的新开始，你也试试吧。