平常事改变我们对人生的看法，
改变我们做出决定的方式，
给我们的心灵留下永久的记忆……
雨珠和雨靴
Raindrops and Rubber Boots
It’s often the simple things in life that make the most significant impact on us. Simple things that change our view of life, change the way we make decisions, leave lasting memories in our minds.
生活中影响我们最深的往往是些平常事。平常事改变我们对人生的看法，改变我们做出决定的方式，给我们的心灵留下永久的记忆。
It was late one afternoon in mid-September. My then three-month-old son was napping in his crib(婴儿床) and I was spending the afternoon getting settled into our new home in Wisconsin. It was a rainy day. Not cold, but a steady drizzle(细雨) had been falling all morning and into the afternoon.
那是九月中旬的一个午后。我当时三个月大的儿子正在婴儿床上睡觉，而我则利用那个下午收拾我们在威斯康星州刚入住的新家。那一天有雨，天不算冷，但是淅淅沥沥的细雨下了整整一个早上，到了下午还不停歇。
As I wandered through our living room, picking up toys and blankets, I happened to glance out my second story balcony(阳台) window. Puddles(水坑) had formed on the ground and the rain had slowed.
我漫无目的地走过起居室，随手拾起玩具和毛毯，不经意间从二层阳台的窗户向外望去。只见地面上已经形成了一个个小水坑，雨下得也不那么急了。
Down below, where the grass met the pavement and a large puddle had formed, stood a boy of about four. He wore a T-shirt and a pair of shorts and up to his knees he sported(惹人注目的穿戴) a pair of red, rubber boots. Filled with a mixture of fascination and glee, he stomped(跺脚) through the puddle, mud and water flying. Over and over he walked, stomped, splashed through that puddle, happily enjoying what Mother Nature had left for him.
楼下草地和人行道的接合处有一个大水坑，那里站着一个四岁左右的小男孩，穿着一件T恤衫和一条短裤，脚蹬一双与膝同高的红色橡胶雨靴。他的内心充满好奇和欢喜，跺着脚走过水坑，一时间泥水四溅。就这样，他一遍又一遍地剁脚踩过那个水坑，开心地享受着大自然母亲给予他的馈赠。
Not more than four feet away stood his mother, watching as her son explored his world. She watched as water droplets(小滴), airborne(在空中的) because of his stomping, landed on the boy’s head, clothes and body. Mud flecks(斑点) flew all around him and still she stood and watched with a pleasant smile on her face. It was a simple scene that I watched from my hidden vantage(优势) point. To an unnoticing passerby it was just two people going about their day. But from my new found sensitivity to the joys and experiences of motherhood, it was a touching moment that altered the way I will forever view my role as a mother.
男孩的妈妈就站在不到四英尺远的地方，注视着儿子探索自己的世界。她看到溅到空中的水珠落到男孩的脑袋、衣服和身体上。男孩四周泥点乱飞，可是当妈妈的仍然站着观看，脸上浮现出开心的笑容。我是在那个隐蔽的有利地点目睹了这普普通通的一幕。如果路人不留心观察，那不过是两个人在一天的寻常生活片断。但是我初为人母，对母亲的幸福和体验特别敏感，那片刻的感动永远地改变了我对母亲职责的认识。
There stood a mother allowing her child to explore and enjoy one of the simple things of life. She showed no concern for a little mud or for the laundry(要洗的衣服) she would later have to do because of the experience. She did not worry that she might have something to get done that day-dinner to cook, the dishes to do, or a phone call to make. She simply let her son relish(喜爱) the effects of one day’s rain and enjoy his afternoon outdoors.
站在那儿的母亲允许孩子探索并享受生活中平常的事物。她并没有因为一点泥巴或者事后得给儿子洗衣服而流露出焦虑之情。她也不为那天可能要做的事操心——做饭、洗碗或者打电话。她仅仅只是让儿子去领略某天的雨后，去享受午后的户外时光。
And so my outlook on motherhood was altered that day because of one simple moment, a glimpse from my balcony window, a pause in my daily cleaning. I was struck at how the mother allowed her son to enjoy the puddles and promised myself that day that I would be the kind of mother who lets my child stomp through life’s puddles. I will allow him to stop and exam the sticks, rocks and bugs, to splash in the bathtub to his heart’s content, to crawl through the dirt, maybe even to blow bubbles in his milk.
于是，那天那个寻常的片刻——从阳台窗户向外的一瞥，从每日家务清理中的暂歇——改变了我对为母之道的看法。那个妈妈放手让她的儿子在水坑嬉戏，这让我感到震撼，在那一天我向自己保证，身为母亲我要准许孩子跺脚踩过人生的水坑。我将允许他停下来研究枝条、石头和虫子，允许他在澡盆里尽情泼水，允许他在泥地上爬来爬去，或许甚至允许他在牛奶里吹泡泡。
A simple moment in my life made me stop and realize just how important the simple things really are. As the little boy in the rubber boots grows up, he probably will not remember each afternoon that his mother took him outside and let him stomp in the puddles or each bug that she let him stop to touch. He may not remember each little thing that his mother does for him every day—each time she lets him explore his world. But he will remember that his mother loved him and he will know that she helped him to learn and grow in a pleasant and fun environment.
我生命中的寻常一刻使我停下来意识到平常事的重要性。等穿橡胶雨靴的小男孩长大之后，他可能不会记得母亲带他出门让他踩水坑的每个下午，不会记得母亲让他停下来触摸的每个虫子。他可能记不得母亲每天为他付出的点点滴滴——记不得每次母亲放手让他探索自己的世界。但是他会记住母亲爱他，也会明白母亲为自己的学习和成长营造了一个开心快乐的环境。
Maybe we can all learn from the innocence of childhood that views a rainstorm not as something to run through or to avoid, but something meant to fascinate, to explore and to enjoy. Maybe we should all stop to play in the rain more often. Maybe I will learn more and my views will change as my experience of motherhood grows and evolves. But one thing I know for sure. As soon as my son can walk, I am buying him a pair of rubber boots.
或许我们都能够从孩提时代的天真中获得启迪：在儿童看来，一场暴雨来临时无需匆匆穿过或避之不及，不妨为之痴迷，一边探索一边享受。或许我们都应该更多地在雨中驻足嬉戏。或许我会有更多心得，我的看法会随当母亲的经历增加和发展而变化。但是有一点我很肯定。我儿子一旦会走路了，我就给他买一双橡胶雨靴。
英文原文By Amber Price
本文摘自《新东方英语》杂志。
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