为狗导盲 Friendship Lasts Forever

佚名/Anonymous

Twenty-one years ago, my husband gave me Sam, an eight-week-old schnauzer, to help ease the loss of our daughter. Sam and I developed a very special bond over the next fourteen years. It seemed nothing that happened could ever change that.

At one point, my husband and I decided to relocate from our New York apartment to a new home in New Jersey. After we were there awhile, our neighbor, whose cat had recently had kittens, asked us if we would like one. We were a little apprehensive about Sams jealousy and how he would handle his turf being invaded, but we decided to risk it and agreed to take a kitten.

We picked a little, gray, playful ball of fur. It was like having a roadrunner in the house. She raced around chasing imaginary mice and squirrels and vaulted from table to chair in the blink of an eye, so we named her Lightning.

At frst, Sam and Lightning were very cautious with each other and kept their distance. But slowly, as the days went on, Lightning started following Sam-up the stairs, down the stairs, into the kitchen to watch him eat, into the living room to watch him sleep. As time passed, they became inseparable. When they slept, it was always together；when they ate, it was always next to each other. When I played with one, the other joined in. If Sam barked at something, Lightning ran to see what it was. When I took either one out of the house, the other was always waiting by the door when we returned. That was the way it was for years.

Then, without any warning, Sam began suffering from convulsions and was diagnosed as having a weak heart. I had no other choice but to have him put down. The pain of making that decision, however, was nothing compared with what I experienced when I had to leave Sam at the vet and walk into our house alone. This time, there was no Sam for Lightning to greet and no way to explain why she would never see her friend again.

In the days that followed, Lightning seemed heart-broken. She could not tell me in words that she was suffering, but I could see the pain and disappointment in her eyes whenever anyone opened the front door, or the hope whenever she heard a dog bark.

The weeks wore on and the cat‘s sorrow seemed to be lifting. One day as I walked into our living room, I happened to glance down on the foor next to our sofa where we had a sculptured replica of Sam that we had bought a few years before. Lying next to the statue, one arm wrapped around the statue’s neck, was Lightning, contentedly sleeping with her best friend.

21年前，为了缓解我失去女儿的痛苦，丈夫把山姆送给了我。那是一只才8周大的德国刚毛犬。而后的14年里，山姆便和我形影不离。似乎任何事情都无法改变我们之间那种亲密无间的关系。

那次我和丈夫决定从纽约公寓搬到新泽西州的新家。住了一段时间后，邻居家的猫生了小猫，问我们是否想要一只。我们有些担心山姆会嫉妒，会因领地被侵占而有所行动。但我们还是决定冒冒风险，答应领养一只。

我们选了一只毛绒球一样贪玩的小灰猫。家里像添了只跑得飞快的走鹃。她到处追逐想象中的老鼠和松鼠，眨眼工夫就从桌子上跳到椅子上，因此我们给她取名叫“闪电”。

起初，山姆和闪电非常谨慎地相处着，始终保持着距离。但是，慢慢地，闪电逐渐开始跟着山姆上下楼，进厨房看他吃东西，进卧室看他睡觉。随着时光的流逝，他们俩成了形影不离的好朋友，吃住在一起。我逗一个玩时，另一个也加入进来。如果山姆冲着什么东西狂叫，闪电便会跑去看个究竟。我带一个出门，回到家时，另一个总会在门口等着。多年来一直如此。

接下来的日子，无任何预兆，山姆开始抽搐。经诊断是心力衰竭。除了放弃他，我别无他法。做出这个决定时，我很痛苦，然而，这种痛苦与我把山姆留在兽医诊所而独自回家是无法相比的。这次，我没有办法让闪电迎接山姆了，也无法解释她为什么将永远见不到她的朋友了。

接下来的日子里，闪电像心碎了一样。她无法用言语向我们倾诉她的苦痛，但每当前门被人打开时，我都能看到她眼神中流露出的痛苦和失望；每当她听到狗叫时，我也可以看到她眼神中的希望。

日子一周周地过去了，猫的悲痛看起来也减轻了好多。一天，我进卧室时，无意中向沙发旁的地板瞟了一眼，那里摆着几年前买的山姆的塑像。闪电一只前腿缠着他的脖子，惬意地躺在雕像旁，与她最要好的朋友睡在了一起。

心灵小语

闪电的心碎了，她无法用言语向我们倾诉她的苦痛，最后只能躺在山姆的雕像旁，在梦中与他相聚。

W词汇笔记

jealousy[dʒeləsi]n.妒忌

例He is burning with jealousy.

他妒火中烧。

invade[inveid]v.侵入；拥入

例The disease invades their sheep.

疾病侵袭了他们的羊。

imaginary[imædʒinəri]adj.想象的；虚构的

例All the characters in this novel are imaginary.

这部小说中的人物都是虚构的。

convulsion[kənvʌlʃən]n.震动；震撼；动乱

例The city was in ruin and convulsion.

这个城市没落于动乱之中。

S小试身手

我们选了一只毛绒球一样贪玩的小灰猫。

译________________________________________

似乎任何事情都无法改变我们之间那种亲密无间的关系。

译________________________________________

日子一周周地过去了，猫的悲痛看起来也减轻了好多。

译________________________________________

P短语家族

We were a little apprehensive about Sams jealousy and how he would handle his turf being invaded.

be apprehensive about：对某事感到忧虑

造________________________________________

Sam began suffering from convulsions and was diagnosed as having a weak heart.

suffer from：遭受；因……而蒙受损害

造________________________________________