文字难度：★★☆
Admittedly, I 1)pitched a bit of a fit when my dad informed me he was driving down to 2)Texas from 3)Kansas! He’d not made the journey by himself for two years. But, with his new knee and a few minor health problems under control, he was back in charge at the age of 88 and darned proud of his independence.
坦白说，当我爸爸告诉我他准备从堪萨斯州一路开车到得克萨斯州时，我有一点抓狂。他有两年时间没有这样独自旅行了。但由于他的膝盖已经复原，另外几个小毛病也好久不大发作了，于是在他88岁那年，他又能重新掌控自己的生活，并且为自己的独立而得意不已。
“Dad, I’ll just have a 4)pow-wow with Jerry and Marland and see what they think about you driving. I’ll let you know what we decide.”
“爸爸，我得去和杰里还有马兰讨论一下，看看他们对你这样开车旅行有什么想法。我会告诉你我们的决定。”
“Well, you guys just pow-wow on! I’ll call when I know what day I’m coming.” That was it. End of conversation! He hung up the phone.
“噢，你们这些家伙只管讨论去吧！我确定了去你们那儿的日期后，会打电话给你们的。”这就是回答。已经说完了！他挂掉了电话。
My husband, Jerry, and elder brother, Marland, didn’t like the idea much more than I did, but what do you do? Our pow-wow was a pitiful failure. Dad’s driver’s license had just been renewed, and he had a brand-new reliable car. Short of 5)hogtying him, there was nothing to do but wait, wonder, and pray. We lost and Dad won another round.
我丈夫杰里和哥哥马兰比我更不喜欢爸爸的这个主意，但我们又能做什么呢？我们的讨论毫无用处，真可悲。爸爸刚换了新的驾驶执照，而且他有一辆崭新且性能可靠的汽车。既然无法把他绑起来，我们除了等待、急切想知道和祈祷以外，什么都不能做。我们输了，而爸爸又赢了一次。
The phone call finally came.
电话终于打来了。
“I’ll be coming on Wednesday or Thursday. I’m expecting a bill and want to get it paid before I leave.”
“我周三或者周四去你们那儿。我在等一张账单，我想在临走前把它付了。”
“Just let me know which day it is, so I’ll know when to start worrying.” I made it sound 6)light-hearted, but I was dead serious.
“只要告诉我是哪一天就行了，好让我知道该从哪天开始担心你。”我的口吻很轻松，但其实我心里担心极了。
On the other hand, Dad thought it was 7)hysterical and nearly broke my eardrum.
电话那头，爸爸却觉得这个笑话非常好笑，他的笑声几乎要震破我的耳膜了。
The highlight of Dad’s trip was a few days at 8)The High Lonesome Ranch. He’s hunted all sorts of game, in numerous states, but he 9)blind-sided us when he announced his need to hunt down a wild hog. Again, what do you do?
爸爸这次旅行的重头戏是要在高寂牧场待上几天。他在很多个州进行过各种各样的狩猎活动，但当他宣布他这次一定要猎到一只野狗时，我们不禁大惊失色。但我们又能做什么呢？
You hustle to make plans, and thank your lucky stars that an aging father is still able to enjoy life and tackle new adventures. After the excitement of the hunt, I was concerned that the rest of his visit might seem a 10)tad on the 11)tame side—two 12)solid weeks of being stuck in the big city!
于是你急着去做安排。多亏了你命里的幸运星，你那位上了年纪的爸爸才依然能享受生活，并进行新的冒险。在他经历了狩猎过程中的那种刺激以后，我很担心他余下的旅程可能会有些乏味——整整两周困在大城市里啊！
But, we wrestled a couple of 13)jigsaw puzzles—a great way to stay busy and visit at the same time. He told wonderful stories of his childhood as we stewed, and I hung on to each word as if I might never hear them again.
不过，我们进行了几场智力拼图的较量——一种既能让爸爸保持忙碌又能继续逗留的绝佳方式。当我们炖东西的时候，他给我讲了一些他童年的精彩故事。我认真倾听他说的每个字，彷佛我以后再没机会听到他讲这些东西了。
After about a week, we shopped for a new suit, found one, and he looked especially handsome as he modeled it. Driving away from the mall he announced, “This won’t get much wear except to church, and the last time I wear it I won’t ever have to change clothes again.” It took me a minute to grasp what he was saying. “Oh, Dad! If I’d known we were looking for 14)burial attire, I wouldn’t even have taken you shopping.” He simply laughed at me and his blue eyes danced with 15)mischief.
大约过了一周，我们一起去逛街，爸爸想买一套新衣服。我们看中了一套，当他试穿时，他看上去特别英俊。开车离开购物商场时，他郑重地说：“除了在教堂以外，我没什么机会穿这套衣服。最后一次穿上它，就再也不必脱下了。”我过了一分钟才领会到他的意思。“哦，爸爸！如果我早知道我们是在挑寿衣，我根本不会带你去逛街的。”他只是取笑我，那双蓝眼睛调皮地转动着。
I let some things 16)slide around the house in order to savor every moment of our time together. Evidently Dad noticed! One day, as I ran a few crucial 17)errands, he cleaned all the tile floors while I was gone. I was humiliated! Within the hour, one of the dogs deposited a piece of dead grass on “his” sparkling floor and he spied it in a flash. “How the 18)heck did I miss that?” he questioned with a frustrated 19)scowl.
为了尽情享受和爸爸在一起的分分秒秒，我没怎么打扫房子。爸爸显然注意到了。有一天，我外出办几件要紧的事，他趁我不在时擦干净了所有的地砖。我感到很羞愧！不到一小时，我们养的一只狗拖了一块枯草皮到他擦得锃亮的地板上，他立刻就发现了。“我怎么能漏了打扫那儿呢？”他愁容满面地质问自己。
All too soon it was time for the visit to end. Dad’s car was packed, hog meat and all, and he was heading home.
很快，爸爸的这次探望要结束了。他的车塞满了公猪肉和其他东西。他准备回家了。
“I love you, Dad. I hope you weren’t bored. I don’t feel like we did anything very special while you were here. At least, nothing that could compare with your hunting trip.”
“我爱你，爸爸。我希望你这段时间不会觉得很无聊。当你待在这里时，我感觉我们没做什么很特别的事。至少没有什么比得上你先前打猎的那段旅程。”
Dad held on tight and 20)stroked my back as we said goodbye. The past few years we both seemed to hang on a little bit longer each time we part. Dad squeezed me a little tighter and his voice cracked, “Every single minute we were together was special.”
当我们说再见的时候，爸爸紧紧地抱着我，拍了拍我的背。过去几年里，我们每次分离时，停留的时间似乎越来越长。爸爸把我抱得更紧，他的声音嘶哑了：“我们一起度过的每一分钟都很特别。”
I pulled back slightly to see tears in his eyes and his chin quivering. It’s a sight seldom seen from a man that still envisions himself as 21)John Wayne.
我把身子稍稍往后倾，看到他眼里的泪水和颤抖的下巴。这是从一个仍自视为约翰·韦恩式硬汉的男人身上难得看到的一幕。
“You’re right. Nothing is more special than our time together.” I was batting back tears, hoping he wouldn’t spot them. Feeling the need to lighten things up, I jokingly said, “You call us as soon as you get home, so I’ll know when I can stop worrying!”
“你说得对。没有什么东西比我们一起度过的时光更特别。”我强忍着泪水，希望他没有看见。我感觉到有必要缓和一下气氛，于是开玩笑说道：“你一到家就打电话给我们啊，好让我知道什么时候可以不再担心你！”
“Yeah, yeah! You need to quit all that worrying. Don’t you know, it’ll make an old woman out of you.” With that, he climbed in the car, waved, and drove away, just as the sun made a spectacular appearance.
It made for a perfect, sunny 22)finale to our “special time” together.
“好的，好的！你不要再瞎操心了。难道你不知道，这样会使你变成一个老太太的吗？”说着，他钻进了车里，向我们挥手告别，然后开车离去，此时的太阳呈现出无比壮丽的景观。
它给我们一起度过的“特别时光”作了一个最完美最灿烂的终结。
