(完整版)EverydayUse原文+譯文

(完整版)EverydayUse原文+譯文(完整版)EverydayUse原文+譯文(完整版)EverydayUse原文+譯文EverydayUseAliceWalkerIwillwaitforherintheyardthatMaggieandImadesocleanandwavyyesterdayafternoon。Ayardlikethisismorecomfortablethanmostpeopleknow.Itisnotjustayard.Itislikeanextendedlivingroom。Whenthehardclayissweptcleanasafloorandthefinesandaroundtheedgeslinedwithtiny,irregulargrooves，anyonecancomeandsitandlookupintotheelmtreeandwaitforthebreezesthatnevercomeinsidethehouse。

Maggiewillbenervousuntilafterhersistergoes：shewillstandhopelesslyincorners，homelyandashamedoftheburnscarsdownherarmsandlegs，eyinghersisterwithamixtureofenvyandawe。Shethinkshersisterhasheldlifealwaysinthepalmofonehand,that"no”isawordtheworldneverlearnedtosaytoher.

You'venodoubtseenthoseTVshowswherethechildwhohas”madeit"isconfronted，asasurprise,byherownmotherandfather，totteringinweaklyfrombackstage。（APleasantsurprise，ofcourse：Whatwouldtheydoifparentandchildcameontheshowonlytocurseoutandinsulteachother？)OnTVmotherandchildembraceandsmileintoeachother’sface.Sometimesthemotherandfatherweep,thechildwrapstheminherarmsandleansacrossthetabletotellhowshewouldnothavemadeitwithouttheirhelp.Ihaveseentheseprograms.

SometimesIdreamadreaminwhichDeeandIaresuddenlybroughttogetheronaTVprogramofthissort.Outofacarkandsoft—seatedlimousineIamusheredintoabrightroomfilledwithmanypeople。ThereImeetasmiling，gray，sportymanlikeJohnnyCarsonwhoshakesmyhandandtellsmewhatafinegirlIhave。ThenweareonthestageandDeeisembracingmewithtearsinhereyes.Shepinsonmydressalargeorchid,eventhoughshehastoldmeoncethatshethinksorchidesaretackyflowers.

InreallifeIamalarge,big-bonedwomanwithrough,man—workinghands.InthewinterIwearflannelnightgownstobedandoverallsduringtheday。Icankillandcleanahogasmercilesslyasaman。Myfatkeepsmehotinzeroweather.Icanworkoutsideallday,breakingicetogetwaterforwashing;Icaneatporklivercookedovertheopentireminutesafteritcomessteamingfromthehog.OnewinterIknockedabullcalfstraightinthebrainbetweentheeyeswithasledgehammerandhadthemeathunguptochillbe-forenightfall.Butofcourseallthisdoesnotshowontelevision.Iamthewaymydaughterwouldwantmetobe:ahundredpoundslighter，myskinlikeanuncookedbarleypan-cake.Myhairglistensinthehotbrightlights。JohnnyCar–sonhasmuchtodotokeepupwithmyquickandwittytongue。

Butthatisamistake.IknowevenbeforeIwakeup.WhoeverknewaJohnsonwithaquicktongue?Whocanevenimaginemelookingastrangewhitemanintheeye？ItseemstomeIhavetalkedtothemalwayswithonetootraisedinflight，withmyheadturnedinwhicheverwayisfarthestfromthem。Dee，though。Shewouldalwayslookanyoneintheeye。Hesitationwasnopartofhernature.

”HowdoIlook,Mama?"Maggiesays，showingjustenoughofherthinbodyenvelopedinpinkskirtandredblouseformetoknowshe’sthere,almosthiddenbythedoor.

"Comeoutintotheyard，”Isay。

Haveyoueverseenalameanimal,perhapsadogrunoverbysomecarelesspersonrichenoughtoownacar，sidleuptosomeonewhoisignorantenoughtobekindofhim?ThatisthewaymyMaggiewalks。Shehasbeenlikethis，chinonchest,eyesonground，feetinshuffle，eversincethefirethatburnedtheotherhousetotheground。

DeeislighterthanMaggie，withnicerhairandafullerfigure。She’sawomannow,thoughsometimesIforget.Howlongagowasitthattheotherhouseburned？Ten，twelveyears？SometimesIcanstillheartheflamesandfeelMaggie’sarmsstickingtome,herhairsmokingandherdressfallingoffherinlittleblackpaperyflakes。Hereyesseemedstretchedopen，blazedopenbytheflamesreflect—edinthem.AndDee.Iseeherstandingoffunderthesweetgumtreesheusedtodiggumoutof；alookatconcentrationonherfaceasshewatchedthelastdingygrayboardofthehousetallintowardthered-hotbrickchimney。Whydon'tyoudoadancearoundtheashes？I'dwantedtoaskher。Shehadhatedthehousethatmuch。

IusedtothinkshehatedMaggie，too。Butthatwasbeforeweraisedthemoney，thechurchandme,tosendhertoAugustatoschool.Sheusedtoreadtouswithoutpity,forcingwords,lies,otherfolks’habits，wholelivesuponustwo，sittingtrappedandignorantunderneathhervoice.Shewashedusinariverofmake-believe，burneduswithalotofknowledgewedidn’tnecessarilyneedtoknow.Pressedustoherwiththeseriouswaysheread，toshoveusawayatjustthemoment,likedimwits,weseemedabouttounderstand。

Deewantednicethings。Ayelloworgandydresstoweartohergraduationfromhighschool;blackpumpstomatchagreensuitshe’dmadefromanoldsuitsomebodygaveme。Shewasdeterminedtostaredownanydisasterinherefforts。Hereyelidswouldnotflickerforminutesatatime.OftenIfoughtoffthetemptationtoshakeher。Atsixteenshehadastyleofherown'andknewwhatstylewas。回答人的補充

2009—09-3018:43Ineverhadaneducationmyself。Aftersecondgradetheschoolwascloseddown.Don’taskmewhy。in1927coloredaskedfewerquestionsthantheydonow。SometimesMaggiereadstome。Shestumblesalonggood—naturedlybutcan'tseewell.Sheknowssheisnotbright。Likegoodlooksandmoney，quicknesspassedherby。ShewillmarryJohnThomas（whohasmossyteethinanearnestface）andthenI’llbefreetosithereandIguessjustsingchurchsongstomyself。AlthoughIneverwasagoodsinger.Nevercouldcarryatune.Iwasalwaysbetterataman’sjob.1usedtolovetomilktillIwashookedinthesidein’49.Cowsaresoothingandslowanddon'tbotheryou，unlessyoutrytomilkthemthewrongway。

Ihavedeliberatelyturnedmybackonthehouse.Itisthreerooms,justliketheonethatburned，excepttheroofistin：theydon’tmakeshingleroofsanymore。Therearenorealwindows,justsomeholescutinthesides，liketheportholesinaship,butnotroundandnotsquare,withrawhideholdingtheshuttersupontheoutside.Thishouseisinapasture，too，liketheotherone。NodoubtwhenDeeseesitshewillwanttotearitdown。Shewrotemeoncethatnomatterwherewe”choose”tolive，shewillmanagetocomeseeus。Butshewillneverbringherfriends。MaggieandIthoughtaboutthisandMaggieaskedme，Mama，whendidDeeeverhaveanyfriends？”

Shehadafew.Furtiveboysinpinkshirtshangingaboutonwashdayafterschool。Nervousgirlswhoneverlaughed.Impressedwithhertheyworshipedthewell-turnedphrase,thecuteshape,thescaldinghumorthateruptedlikebubblesinlye.Shereadtothem.

WhenshewascourtingJimmyTshedidn’thavemuchtimetopaytous，butturnedallherfaultfindingpoweronhim.Heflewtomarryacheapcitygirlfromafamilyofignorantflashypeople.Shehardlyhadtimetorecomposeherself。

WhenshecomesIwillmeet-—buttheretheyare!

Maggieattemptstomakeadashforthehouse，inhershufflingway，butIstayherwithmyhand?！盋omebackhere，”Isay.Andshestopsandtriestodigawellinthesandwithhertoe。

Itishardtoseethemclearlythroughthestrongsun。ButeventhefirstglimpseoflegoutofthecartellsmeitisDee.Herfeetwerealwaysneat—looking，asitGodhimselfhadshapedthemwithacertainstyle.Fromtheothersideofthecarcomesashort,stockyman.Hairisalloverhisheadafootlongandhangingfromhischinlikeakinkymuletail。IhearMaggiesuckinherbreath。"Uhnnnh,”iswhatitsoundslike.Likewhenyouseethewrigglingendofasnakejustinfrontofyourtootontheroad。"Uhnnnh?！?/p>

Deenext.Adressdowntotheground,inthishotweather.Adresssoloudithurtsmyeyes.Thereareyel-lowsandorangesenoughtothrowbackthelightofthesun.Ifeelmywholefacewarmingfromtheheatwavesitthrowsout。Earringsgold，too，andhangingdowntohershoulders。Braceletsdanglingandmakingnoiseswhenshemovesherarmuptoshakethefoldsofthedressoutofherarmpits。Thedressislooseandflows,andasshewalkscloser，Ilikeit.IhearMaggiego”Uhnnnh”again。Itishersister'shair.Itstandsstraightuplikethewoolonasheep.Itisblackasnightandaroundtheedgesaretwolongpigtailsthatropeaboutlikesmalllizardsdisappearingbehindherears。

”Wa—su—zo—Tean—o！”shesays，comingoninthatglidingwaythedressmakeshermove。Theshortstockyfellowwiththehairtohisnavelisallgrinningandhefollowsupwith”Asalamalakim,mymotherandsister！”HemovestohugMaggiebutshefallsback，rightupagainstthebackofmychair。IfeelhertremblingthereandwhenIlookupIseetheperspirationfallingoffherchin.

"Don’tgetup,"saysDee。SinceIamstoutittakessomethingofapush。YoucanseemetryingtomoveasecondortwobeforeImakeit.Sheturns，showingwhiteheelsthroughhersandals，andgoesbacktothecar。OutshepeeksnextwithaPolaroid。ShestoopsdownquicklyandlinesuppictureafterpictureofmesittingthereinfrontofthehousewithMaggiecoweringbehindme。Shenevertakesashotwithoutmakingsurethehouseisincluded.WhenacowcomesnibblingaroundtheedgeoftheyardshesnapsitandmeandMaggieandthehouse。ThensheputsthePolaroidinthebackseatofthecar，andcomesupandkissesmeontheforehead.

MeanwhileAsalamalakimisgoingthroughmotionswithMaggie’shand.Maggie'shandisaslimpasafish,andprobablyascold,despitethesweat，andshekeepstryingtopullitback。ItlookslikeAsalamalakimwantstoshakehandsbutwantstodoitfancy.Ormaybehedon’tknowhowpeopleshakehands。Anyhow,hesoongivesuponMaggie.

"Well,"Isay。”Dee?！?/p>

”No，Mama，"shesays."Not'Dee'，WangeroLeewanikaKemanjo！”

”Whathappenedto’Dee'？"Iwantedtoknow。

"She'sdead，"Wangerosaid?！盜couldn’tbearitanylonger，beingnamedafterthepeoplewhooppressme."

"YouknowaswellasmeyouwasnamedafteryourauntDicle,”Isaid.Dicieismysister.ShenamedDee。Wecalledher"BigDee"afterDeewasborn。

”Butwhowasshenamedafter?"askedWangero.

"IguessafterGrandmaDee，"Isaid.

”Andwhowasshenamedafter?"askedWangero。

"Hermother,"Isaid,andsawWangerowasgettingtired?！盩hat'saboutasfarbackasIcantraceit，"Isaid.

Though,infact，IprobablycouldhavecarrieditbackbeyondtheCivilWarthroughthebranches.

”Well，”saidAsalamalakim，”thereyouare.”

”Uhnnnh,”IheardMaggiesay。

"ThereIwasnot,”Isaid，before’Dicie’croppedupinourfamily，sowhyshouldItrytotraceitthatfarback？"

Hejuststoodtheregrinning,lookingdownonmelikesomebodyinspectingaModelAcar.EveryonceinawhileheandWangerosenteyesignalsovermyhead。

"Howdoyoupronouncethisname？"Iasked。

"Youdon'thavetocallmebyitifyoudon'twantto,”saidWangero.

”Whyshouldn'tI？"Iasked?！盜fthat’swhatyouwantustocallyou,we'llcallyou?！?/p>

”Iknowitmightsoundawkwardatfirst,"saidWangero.

"I’llgetusedtoit,"Isaid。"Reamitoutagain。”

Well,soonwegotthenameoutoftheway.Asalamalakimhadanametwiceaslongandthreetimesashard.AfterItrippedoverittwoorthreetimeshetoldmetojustcallhimHakim-a—barber。Iwantedtoaskhimwasheabarber,butIdidn’treallythinkhewas,soIdon’task。

"Youmustbelongtothosebeet-cattlepeoplesdowntheroad,”Isaid.Theysaid"Asalamalakirn”whentheymetyoutoo,buttheydidn'tShakehands.Alwaystoobusyfeedingthecattle,fixingthefences,puttingupsalt-lickshelters,throwingdownhay.Whenthewhitefolkspoisonedsomeoftheherdthemenstayedupallnightwithriflesintheirhands。Iwalkedamileandahalfjusttoseethesight。

Hakim-a—barbersaid,”Iacceptsomeoftheirdoctrines,butfarmingandraisingcattleisnotmystyle。"（Theydidn’ttellme,andIdidn'task，whetherWangero（Dee）hadreallygoneandmarriedhim.)

Wesatdowntoeatandrightawayhesaidhedidn’teatcollardsandporkwasunclean.Wangero,though,wentonthroughthechitlinsandcornbread,thegreensandevery-thingelse.Shetalkedabluestreakoverthesweetpotatoes。Everythingdelightedher.Eventhefactthatwestillusedthebenchesherdaddymadeforthetablewhenwecouldn’taffordtobuychairs。

"Oh,Mama！"shecried.ThenturnedtoHakim—a—barber?！盜neverknewhowlovelythesebenchesare。Youcanfeeltherumpprints，"shesaid，runningherhandsunderneathherandalongthebench。ThenshegaveasighandherhandclosedoverGrandmaDee’sbutterdish.”That’sit!”shesaid.”IknewtherewassomethingIwantedtoaskyouifIcouldhave."Shejumpedupfromthetableandwentoverinthecornerwherethechurnstood，themilkinitclabberbynow.Shelookedatthechurnandlookedatit。

”ThischurntopiswhatIneed，"shesaid?！盌idn'tUncleBuddywhittleitoutofatreeyouallusedtohave？"

”Yes，”Isaid。

”Uhhuh，”shesaidhappily.”AndIwantthedasher,too。"

"UncleBuddywhittlethat,too？”askedthebarber。

Dee（Wangero)lookedupatme.

"AuntDee’sfirsthusbandwhittledthedash,"saidMaggiesolowyoualmostcouldn'thearher."HisnamewasHenry,buttheycalledhimStash.”

"Maggie’sbrainislikeanelephants，"Wanglerosaid,laughing?！盜canusethechurntopasacenterpieceforthealcovetable,”shesaid，slidingaplateoverthechurn,”andI’llthinkofsomethingartistictodowiththedasher."

回答人的補充

2009-09—3018：56Whenshefinishedwrappingthedasherthehandlestuckout.Itookitforamomentinmyhands.Youdidn’tevenhavetolookclosetoseewherehandspushingthedasherupanddowntomakebutterhadleftakindofsinkinthewood。Infact，therewerealotofsmallsinks;youcouldseewherethumbsandfingershadsunkintothewood.Itwasbeautifullightyellowwood,fromatreethatgrewintheyardwhereBigDeeandStashhadlived.

AfterdinnerDee（Wangero)wenttothetrunkatthefootofmybedandstartedriflingthroughit。Maggiehungbackinthekitchenoverthedishpan。OutcameWangerowithtwoquilts.TheyhadbeenpiecedbyGrandmaDeeandthenBigDeeandmehadhungthemonthequiltframesonthefrontporchandquiltedthem.OnewasintheLoneStarpattern。TheotherwasWalkAroundtheMountain。InbothofthemwerescrapsofdressesGrandmaDeehadwornfiftyandmoreyearsago。BitsandpiecesofGrandpaJarrell’sPaisleyshirts。Andoneteenyfadedbluepiece，aboutthesizeofapennymatchbox,thatwasfromGreatGrandpaEzra'suniformthatheworeintheCivilWar。

"Mama，”Wangerosaidsweetasabird."CanIhavetheseoldquilts?”

Iheardsomethingfallinthekitchen,andaminutelaterthekitchendoorslammed.

"Whydon'tyoutakeoneortwooftheothers？”1asked.”TheseoldthingswasjustdonebymeandBigDeefromsometopsyourgrandmapiecedbeforeshedied."

”No，"saidWangero."Idon'twantthose。Theyarestitchedaroundthebordersbymachine。"

”That’llmakethemlastbetter,”Isaid。

”That’snotthepoint,"saidWanglero?！盩heseareallpiecesofdressesGrandmausedtowear。Shedidallthisstitchingbyhand.Imagine!"Sheheldthequiltssecurelyinherarms,strokingthem.

"Someofthepieces,likethoselavenderones,comefromoldclotheshermotherhandeddowntoher,”Isaid,movinguptotouchthequilts.Dee(Wangero）movedbackjustenoughsothatIcouldn’treachthequilts.Theyalreadybelongedtoher。"Imagine!”shebreathedagain,clutchingthemcloselytoherbosom.

"Thetruthis，”Isaid,"IpromisedtogivethemquiltstoMaggie,forwhenshemarriesJohnThomas?！?/p>

Shegaspedlikeabeehadstungher。

”Maggiecan’tappreciatethesequilts！”shesaid?！盨he'dprobablybebackwardenoughtoputthemtoeverydayuse?！?/p>

”Ireckonshewould,”Isaid.”GodknowsIbeensavage'emforlongenoughwithnobodyusing’em.Ihopeshewill!”Ididn’twanttobringuphowIhadofferedDee(Wangero）aquiltwhenshewentawaytocollege.Thenshehadtoldmetheywereold—fashioned，outofstyle。

"Butthey'repriceless!"shewassayingnow,furiously，forshehasatemper?！盡aggiewouldputthemonthebedandinfiveyearsthey’dbeinrags.Lessthanthat！""Shecanalwaysmakesomemore,”Isaid."Maggieknowshowtoquilt."

Dee(Wangero)lookedatmewithhatred."Youjustwillnotunderstand.Thepointisthesequilts，thesequilts!"

"Well,”Isaid,，stumped?！盬hatwouldyoudowiththem?”

”Hangthem，”shesaid.Asitthatwastheonlythingyoucoulddowithquilts。

Maggiebynowwasstandinginthedoor.Icouldalmosthearthesoundherfeetmadeastheyscrapedovereachother。

”Shecanhavethem，Mama，”shesaidlikesomebodyusedtoneverwinninganything，orhavinganythingreservedforher."Ican'memberGrandmaDeewithoutthequilts。"

Ilookedatherhard。Shehadfilledherbottomlipwithcheckerberrysnuffanditgaveherfaceakindofdopey,hangdoglook。ItwasGrandmaDeeandBigDeewhotaughtherhowtoquiltherself。Shestoodtherewithherscarredhandshiddeninthefoldsofherskirt.Shelookedathersisterwithsomethinglikefearbutshewasn'tmadather.ThiswasMaggie’sportion.ThiswasthewaysheknewGodtowork.

WhenIlookedatherlikethatsomethinghitmeinthetopofmyheadandrandowntothesolesofmyfeet。JustlikewhenI'minchurchandthespiritofGodtouchesmeandIgethappyandshout。IdidsomethingIneverhaddonebefore：huggedMaggietome，thendraggedheronintotheroom,snatchedthequiltsoutofMissWangero'shandsanddumpedthemintoMaggie’slap。Maggiejustsatthereonmybedwithhermouthopen。

”Takeoneortwooftheothers，”IsaidtoDee.

ButsheturnedwithoutawordandwentouttoHakim-a-barber。

”Youjustdon'tunderstand，"shesaid，asMaggieandIcameouttothecar。

”Whatdon’tIunderstand？"Iwantedtoknow.

"Yourheritage，"shesaid.AndthensheturnedtoMaggie,kissedher,andsaid，”Yououghttotrytomakesome-thingofyourself,too,Maggie。It’sreallyanewdayforus.ButfromthewayyouandMamastillliveyou'dneverknowit.”

Sheputonsomesunglassesthathideverythingabovethetipofhernoseandherchin.

Maggiesmiled；maybeatthesunglasses。Butarealmile,notscared.AfterwewatchedthecardustsettleIaskedMaggietobringmeadipofsnuff.Andthenthetwoofussattherejustenjoying,untilitwastimetogointhehouseandgotobed.

NOTES

1)AliceWalker:born1944inEatonton，Georgia，AmericaandgraduatedfromSarahLawrenceCollege。HerbooksincludeTheThirdLifeofGrangeCopeland（1970)，Meridian（1976)，TheColorPurple（1982）,etc.

2）”madeit":tobecomeasuccess,tosucceed，eitherinspecificendeavororingeneral

3）JohnnyCarson:amanwhorunsalatenighttalkshow

4)hooked：injuredbythehornofthecowbeingmilked

5）JimmyT：'T'istheinitialofthesurnameoftheboyDeewascourting.

6)”Wa—su—zo—Tean-o!"：phoneticrenderingofanAfricandialectsalutation

7)”Asalamalakim”:phoneticrenderingofaMuslimgreeting

8)Polaroid：acamerathatproducesinstantpictures

9）theCivilWar:thewarbetweentheNorthandtheSouthintheU。S。（1861-1865)

10)branches:branchesordivisionsofafamilydescendingfromacommonancestor

11）Reamitoutagain:"Ream"isperhapsanAfricandialectwordmeaning:”unfold，display"。Hencethephrasemaymean"repeat"or”sayitonceagain"

12）porkwasunclean：Muslimsareforbiddenbytheirreligiontoeatporkbecauseitisconsideredtobeunclean。

13）Chitlins：alsochitlingsorchitterlings,thesmallintestinesofpigs，usedforfood,acommondishinAfro-Americanhouseholds

14）rumpprints:depressionsinthebenchesmadebyconstantsitting

15）sink：depressionsinthewoodofthehandleleftbythethumbsandfingers外婆的日用家當艾麗斯?沃克爾

我就在這院子里等候她的到來。我和麥姬昨天下午已將院子打掃得干干凈凈，地面上還留著清晰的掃帚掃出的波浪形痕跡，這樣的院子比一般人想象的要舒服，它不僅僅是一個院子，簡直就像一間擴大了的客廳。當院子的泥土地面被打掃得像屋里的地板一樣干凈，四周邊緣的細沙面上布滿不規(guī)則的細紋時,任何人都可以進來坐一下，一邊抬頭仰望院中的榆樹,一邊等著享受從來吹不進屋內的微風。

麥姬在她姐姐離去之前將會一直心神不定：她將會神情沮喪地站在角落里，一面為自己的丑陋面孔和胳膊大腿上曬出的累累疤痕而自慚形穢,一面懷著既羨慕又敬畏的心情怯生生地看著她姐姐。她覺得她姐姐真正是生活的主人，想要什么便能得到什么，世界還沒有學會對她說半個“不”字。

你一定從電視片上看到過“闖出了江山”的兒女突然出乎意料地出現在那跌跌撞撞從后臺走出來的父母面前的場面。（當然,那場面必定是令人喜悅的：假如電視上的父母和兒女之間相互攻擊辱罵，他們該怎么樣呢？）在電視上，母親和兒女見面總是相互擁抱和微笑.有時父母會痛哭流涕，而那發(fā)跡了的孩子就會緊緊地擁抱他們，并隔著桌子伸過頭來告訴他們說若沒有他們的幫助，她自己就不會有今日的成就.我自己就看過這樣的電視節(jié)目.

有時候我在夢里夢見迪伊和我突然成了這種電視節(jié)目的劇中人.我從一輛黑色軟座墊大轎車上一下來,立刻被人引進一間寬敞明亮的屋子里.屋里有許多人，其中一個身材高大威武,滿面微笑，有點像著名電視節(jié)目主持人約翰尼?？ㄉ拿滥凶佑蟻砗臀椅帐?，并對我說我養(yǎng)了個好女兒.然后,我們來到臺前,迪伊熱淚盈眶地擁抱著我,還把一朵大大的蘭花別在我的衣服上，盡管她曾對我說過蘭花是很低級的花。

在現實生活中，我是一個大塊頭、大骨架的婦女,有著干男人活兒的粗糙雙手。冬天睡覺時我穿著絨布睡衣，白天身穿套頭工作衫.我能像男人一樣狠狠地宰豬并收拾干凈.我身上的脂肪是我在寒冬也能保暖。我能整天在戶外干活兒，敲碎冰塊，取水洗衣。我能吃從剛宰殺的豬體內切下來、還冒著熱氣、而后在明火上燒熟的豬肝.有一年冬天,我用一把大鐵錘擊倒一頭公牛,錘子正大在小牛兩眼之間的大腦上.天黑之前,我把牛肉掛起來涼著。不過,這一切當然都沒有在電視上出現過.我的女兒希望我的樣子是:體重減去一百磅，皮膚像下鍋煎之前的大麥面餅那樣細膩光澤,頭發(fā)在熾熱耀眼的燈光下閃閃發(fā)亮。而且，我還是一個伶牙俐齒的人,說起話來妙語連珠，就連約翰尼.卡森也望塵莫及。

可是，這是個錯誤，我還沒醒來之前就知道了.誰聽說約翰遜家的人士伶牙俐齒的？誰能想象我敢直視一個陌生的白人？和他們講話時，我總是緊張不安,隨時準備溜走。我的頭總是轉到離他們最遠的方向。不過，迪伊就不這樣。她對任何人都不畏懼.猶豫不決可不是她的本性。

“我看上去怎么樣啊，媽媽？"麥姬的聲音傳來.她那瘦小的身軀幾乎被一件粉紅色裙子和大紅罩衫全遮住了，人有躲在門背后，身子給門遮去一大半,我好容易才看出她來。

“快出屋到院子里來，”我說。

你有沒有見到過一個跛了腿的動物，比如說一只狗，被一個粗心莽撞的有錢買得起汽車的人壓傷后側著身子向一個愚昧的對它表示關切的人走去時的樣子？我的麥姬走路時就是那個樣子。自從那次大火燒跨房屋之事發(fā)生后，她一直是這個樣子，下巴貼近胸口，眼盯著地面，走路拖著腳。

迪伊生的比麥姬白一些，頭發(fā)也好看一些，身材也豐滿一些.她現在已是一個成年女子了，不過我經常忘記這一事實.那座房屋被火燒毀是多久以前的事？十年？十二年？有時候我似乎還能聽見燃燒的火焰發(fā)出的呼呼的響聲，可以感覺到麥姬用手緊緊抓住我，看到她的頭發(fā)冒煙，她的衣服燒成黑灰一片片脫落的情景。當時她的眼睛瞪得大大的，亮亮的，反射出閃爍著的火苗。還有迪伊，我遠遠看見她站在她經常從其中挖樹膠的那棵香楓膠樹底下，望著屋上最后一塊燒成灰黑色的木板朝著燒紅了的滾燙的磚砌煙囪方向塌下來時，她臉上呈現出一幅非常專注的神色.你干嗎不在那堆廢墟上跳個舞？我當時像這樣問她。她對那所房屋恨得要命。

過去我以為她也討厭麥姬.但是那是在教堂和我籌錢送她到奧古斯塔上學之前的事。那時她常給我們讀點什么，讀時毫無同情之心，將文字、謊言、別人的習慣以及整個生活強加于我倆。我和麥姬毫無辦法，一無所知地困坐在那里，她的聲音凌駕于我們之上。她對我們灌輸一大堆編造出來的事物以及我們不需要掌握的知識。她嚴肅地強迫我們聽她讀書，把我們兩人看成傻瓜一樣，剛有點似懂非懂的時候又把我們揮之而去。

迪伊好打扮。中學畢業(yè)時她要一件黃色玻璃紗連衣裙穿著去參加畢業(yè)典禮;為了與她用別人送我的一套舊衣服改制的綠色套服配著穿,她又要了一雙黑色淺口皮鞋。她要什么東西時總是不顧一切地拼命地要，不達目的不罷休，她可以一連好幾分鐘不眨眼地死瞪著你。我常常是費了好大的勁才克制住自己沒把她抓著使勁搖抖。到十六歲時她的言談舉止開始形成自己的風格，她也知道什么叫時髦。

我自己從未受過教育.我上完小學二年級時,學校關門了。別問我為什么：1927年時有色人種不像現在問這么多問題.有時麥姬給我讀點東西。她溫厚地、結結巴巴地讀者,因為她看不清楚。她知道自己不聰明。正如姣好的相貌和金錢一樣，機敏也沒有光顧她.不久她就要嫁給約翰。托馬斯（他有一張誠實的面孔和一口像長了苔的牙齒）。麥姬結婚后，我將閑坐在家里，也許只對自己唱唱教堂歌曲，盡管我從來唱不好，總是走調,我對于男人活兒倒是更在行。我一向喜歡擠牛奶，直到1949年我的肋部被牛頂傷了為止。母牛生性恬靜、動作緩慢，不會傷害人,除非你擠奶時動作不得法.

我故意背對這房子.這房子有三個房間,除屋頂是錫皮的外,其他方面都與被燒掉的那所房屋一樣。現在再也找不到做木瓦屋頂的了。房子沒有真正的窗戶，只是側面墻上挖了幾個洞,有點像船上的舷窗，但又不是圓的,也不是方形的。窗格子向外開，用生牛皮懸吊起來.這房子也像那所被燒的房子一樣建在一個牧場上.毫無疑問,只要迪伊看見這所房子，她一定又要毀掉它。她曾寫信告訴我說，無論我們“選擇”何處定居,她都會設法來看我們，但卻不會帶她的朋友上門。麥姬和我對這話考慮了一會，麥姬突然問我：“媽媽，迪伊什么時候有過朋友的呀？”

她有過幾個朋友的。有的是在洗衣日放學后到處閑蕩得穿著粉紅襯衣的鬼鬼祟祟的男孩子；有的是從來不笑一笑得神經質的女孩子。他們?yōu)樗?，并崇拜她的得體的言語、她的漂亮身材以及她那像堿水里的起泡一樣的尖酸幽默。她還為他們讀書。

她在追求吉米的那段日子里便沒有時間來管我們的閑事，而是把她的全副挑刺兒的本領全部用在他的身上.可他很快娶了一個很差勁兒的、出身于愚昧而俗氣的家庭的城市姑娘.當時她難過得很，冷靜不下來。

她到這兒來時我要去迎接-—但他們已經到了.

麥姬拔腿就要往屋里跑去，但我第一眼看見從車上下來的那條腿就知道那是迪伊.她的腿看起來總是那么齊整，好像是上帝親自為她特意定做的似的。從車子的另一邊走下來一個矮胖的男人，他滿頭的頭發(fā)都有一英尺長,從下巴頦上垂下來，像一只卷毛的騾子尾巴。我聽見麥姬吸氣的聲音，聽起來像是“呃”音，就像你路上突然發(fā)像一條蛇尾巴在你腳尖前蠕動時發(fā)出的聲音?！斑馈！?/p>

接著我便看見了迪伊。這樣大熱天里，她竟穿著一件拖地長裙。裙子的顏色也花哨的耀眼，大塊大塊的黃色和橙色，亮得可以反射太陽的光線。我感到我的整個臉頰都被它射出的熱浪燙的熱烘烘的.耳環(huán)也是金的,并且直垂到肩膀上.臂上還帶著手鐲，當她舉起胳臂去抖動腋窩部衣服上的皺褶時，臂上的手鐲叮當作響。衣裙長大寬松，迎風飄蕩。當她走近時，我覺得挺好看。我聽見麥姬又發(fā)出“呃”聲，這次是為她姐姐的發(fā)型而發(fā)的.她姐姐的頭發(fā)向羊毛一樣挺得直直的，像黑夜一樣烏黑,邊上扎著兩根長辮子,像兩條小蜥蜴，左盤右繞在耳朵后面。

“瓦-蘇-左—提—諾！”她一邊說著，一邊拖著長裙步態(tài)輕盈飄然而至.隨著她的一句“阿薩拉馬拉吉姆，我母親和妹妹!"那位頭發(fā)垂至肚臍眼的矮胖男人也笑著走上前來。他作勢要擁抱麥姬，但麥姬下的往后退，直到我的椅子背擋住她的退路為止。我感覺到她身子在發(fā)抖，抬頭一看，只見汗水從她的下巴上直往下滴。

“別站起來,”迪伊說道。因為我長的肥胖，站起來頗需費點勁。你瞧，我身子要挪動挪動才站得起來.她轉身往汽車方向走回去。我可以透過她穿的涼鞋看到她的白生生的腳后跟.接著他拿起一架“拍立來"照相機瞄過來。她很快蹲下去搶拍了一張又一張的照片，選取的鏡頭都是我坐在屋前，而麥姬縮成一團躲在我背后。她每拍一張照片總要認認真真地選好鏡頭把屋子拍進去。當一頭奶牛走過來在院子邊啃青草時，她立即搶鏡頭把它和我和麥姬、房子一起拍了一張照片。然后,她將照相機放在汽車的后排座位上，跑過來吻了吻我的前額.

與此同時，阿薩拉馬拉吉姆正在努力拉著麥姬的手行禮。麥姬的手像魚一樣軟弱無力，恐怕也像魚一樣冷冰冰的，盡管她身上正在出汗。而且她還一個勁兒地把手往后縮.看起來阿薩拉馬拉吉姆是想同她握手，但又想把握手的動作做的時髦花哨一點.也許是她不曉得正當的握手規(guī)矩。不管怎么說，她很快就放棄同麥姬周旋的努力了。

“喂，”我開口道?！暗弦痢！?/p>

“不對，媽媽，”她說。“不是‘迪伊'，是‘萬杰羅.李萬里卡?？寺鼏?！"

“那‘迪伊’呢？”我問道。

“她已經死了，”萬杰羅說?！拔覠o法忍受照那些壓迫我的人的名字個我取名?！?/p>

“你同我一樣清楚你的名字是照你迪茜姨媽的名字取得，”我說。迪茜是我的妹妹,她名叫迪伊。迪伊出生后我們就叫她“大迪伊”。

“但她的名字又是依照誰的名字取得呢？”萬杰羅追問道。

“我猜想是照迪伊外婆的名字取得，”我說。

“她的名字又是照誰的名字取得呢？"萬杰羅逼問道。

“她的媽媽，”我說。這是我注意到萬杰羅已經開始感到有點厭煩了。“再遠的我就記不得了，”我說。其實，我大概可以把我們的家史追溯到南北戰(zhàn)爭以前。

“噢，”阿薩拉馬拉吉姆說，“您已經說到哪兒了？”

我聽到麥姬又“呃”了一聲。

“我還沒有呢，"我說，“那是在‘迪茜'來到我們家之前的事，我為什么要追溯到那么遠呢？”

他站在那兒咧著嘴笑，目光朝下，用人們檢查A型轎車的眼神打量著我。他還和萬杰羅在我的頭頂上空頻遞眼色.

“你這名字是怎么念的來著？"我問。

“您若不愿意,就不必用這個名字來叫我，”萬杰羅說

“我干嗎不叫？”我問。“如果你自己喜歡用那個名字，我們就叫那個名字.”

“我知道這名字起初聽起來有點別扭,”萬杰羅說。

“我會慢慢習慣的，”我說，“你給我再念一遍吧?！本瓦@樣,我們很快就不再提名字發(fā)音問題了.阿薩拉馬拉吉姆的名字有兩倍那么長，三倍那么難念。我試著念了兩三次都念錯了，于是他就叫我干脆稱呼他哈