親愛的爸爸媽媽

我知道自己每天都會(huì)說我愛你們，但有時(shí)候光說“我愛你們”對(duì)我來說遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)不夠。有時(shí)“我愛你們”不能完全道出我有多愛你們，至少我是這樣想的。但我總是避免談?wù)撈鹋c此相關(guān)的個(gè)人情感或話題，我想你們肯定早就察覺到這件事了。我猜這也是為什么我總是能夠在寫作中找到安慰。所以，在我像往常一樣突然偏離正題之前，我要寫出自己一直以來想要說的一切。

我明白過去這些年對(duì)我們來說絕不容易。我想你們可以說1991年4月的一個(gè)早晨切切實(shí)實(shí)地讓我們的人生軌跡發(fā)生了巨變。你們那天害怕嗎？當(dāng)聽到醫(yī)生說我活不過兩歲半時(shí)你們是什么感覺？或者，當(dāng)?shù)弥一剂四撤N罕見的遺傳性疾病，而當(dāng)時(shí)又無人真正了解這種病時(shí)，你們又是什么心情？我甚至無法開始去想象這件事帶給你們的痛苦有多深。你們不得不去經(jīng)歷這些，我真的很抱歉。但你們看，現(xiàn)在事情變得多么美好，就像一個(gè)奇跡。盡管我人生之路的最初是那么痛苦和不可預(yù)知，但我不會(huì)讓疾病主宰我的命運(yùn)。

我都記不清我們的生活經(jīng)歷過多少次考驗(yàn)了，但是從沒有哪種難關(guān)是我們闖不過去的。這就是我們共享的親情之美所在。我們一直是一個(gè)團(tuán)隊(duì)，永遠(yuǎn)都是；我們?cè)朔松顏G給我們的每一個(gè)困難，并肩作戰(zhàn)。因?yàn)檫@些，我必須說一聲謝謝你們。謝謝你們一直在黑暗中做我的指路明燈。謝謝你們?cè)谖屹|(zhì)疑自己是否有能力擊退一場(chǎng)又一場(chǎng)苦難和疾病時(shí)，擁著我度過每一個(gè)流淚而徘徊的時(shí)刻。謝謝你們做了你們能做的一切，給予我太多太多，遠(yuǎn)超我所應(yīng)得。謝謝你們讓我擁有盡可能最充實(shí)的人生。

請(qǐng)相信我說的這句話——如果不是你們無條件地給予我永恒的愛和支持，我將不會(huì)走到今天。我在過去23年里取得的成功完全歸功于你們的努力——是你們一直賦予我展翅翱翔的勇氣和動(dòng)力。你們教我追求夢(mèng)想要無所畏懼。在我脆弱的時(shí)候，你們賦予我力量。你們總是無私地將我的需求置于你們自己的需求之前，是你們讓我取得如此大的進(jìn)步，不斷茁壯成長(zhǎng)。盡管我們?cè)谌松缆飞嫌龅搅颂嗟睦щy，但是我們擁有彼此，我這輩子別無所求。

爸爸媽媽，在這一天即將結(jié)束，我迷迷糊糊入睡之際，我想我的生命中能擁有你們，我簡(jiǎn)直幸運(yùn)得不可思議。每一天，我都感謝上帝賜予我的福分。我感謝他賜予我一個(gè)兄弟，賜予我健康，更重要的是，賜予我你們兩個(gè)。我知道事情看上去可能并不是一直如此，尤其是當(dāng)我陷入那些可怕的壞情緒中時(shí)。那只是因?yàn)橛袝r(shí)候我讓身體中的惡魔占了上風(fēng)，變得傾向于自我封閉。就像我以前說過的，我還沒有真正找到管理自己情緒的有效方法。但對(duì)于我曾一次次對(duì)你們發(fā)泄怒火和挫敗情緒的行為，我負(fù)有全部的責(zé)任。所以，請(qǐng)你們?cè)徫摇Ｎ蚁胛疫@么做時(shí)一定不會(huì)令人開心，但請(qǐng)答應(yīng)我，你們會(huì)永遠(yuǎn)記得我本意是好的。因?yàn)槲覑勰銈儭６?，我希望我在這封信里對(duì)你們說的話能夠真切地表達(dá)出我的本意。

永遠(yuǎn)愛你們，

你們的寶貝女兒 200383.png

1. go off at a tangent： 突然偏離正題。tangent [?t?nd??nt] n. 突兀的轉(zhuǎn)向；離題

2. grievous [?ɡri?v?s] adj. 使人痛苦的；令人悲傷的

3. be about to： 將要做某事

4. throw a curve ball at sb.： 給某人設(shè)置困難（或障礙）讓某人驚訝

5. solely [?s??lli] adv. 只；僅僅；完全

6. thrive [θra?v] vi. 欣欣向榮；茁壯成長(zhǎng)；興旺發(fā)達(dá)

7. have ones fair share of （sth.）： 遭遇許多（或過多）壞事情

8. drift off to sleep： 迷迷糊糊地睡去；逐漸入睡

9. get the best of sb.： 打敗某人

10. shut down： 關(guān)閉，停止運(yùn)作

11. accountability [??ka?nt??b?l?ti] n. （對(duì)某事）負(fù)有責(zé)任；能做出解釋

p50-51.psd

2016-10%e6%9c%88%e5%b0%81%e9%9d%a2%e9%9f%b3%e9%a2%91%e4%ba%8c%e7%bb%b4%e7%a0%81.jpg

掃碼聽音頻

The corner of 71st Street and Prospect is my corner. Most folks look at it and find theres nothing there， just an empty lot. But theyre not looking hard enough. My corner is like a wide-open treasure box.

My name is Tia. I live on the third floor of the apartment building next-door. Some days when my sisters and brothers are chasing each other and yelling， and I feel like the walls of our apartment are about to burst， I run down to my corner. My sneakers pound1） the pavement， and then take me on a flying leap into a sea of green. I wade2） through the tall grass. Butterflies gather at my feet. Im careful not to step on the flowers that grow here. Theyre beautiful， even though theyre probably just weeds. The grass smells clean and fresh. The sun warms my skin， and I wonder why Im the only one whos thankful for this place.

Some folks dont respect this corner. Ive seen them throw trash from their car windows as they speed down 71st. There is junk here too： old chairs， a broken bicycle wheel， someones rusty mailbox ...

One evening， Mama says， "Tia， the city wants to pave over3） that corner of yours， turn it into a parking lot." I stop in my tracks4）. "Not my corner， Mama！ They cant do that！" "They can and they will，" says Mama， "unless somebody comes up with a better idea." "It just needs some cleaning up， thats all. How come they cant see that？" I run to my room and slam5） the door. Out my window I can see my corner. Mama knocks softly at the door and steps in.

"Tia， you see something in that corner that most folks dont. You have to make them see what you see. Make some noise about6） it. No one ever got anyplace by sitting back7） and staying quiet."

That night， I lie awake for a long time. Im thinking about what Mama said to me. In my heart， I know shes right. Ive got to do something.

Early the next morning I drag a chair down to the corner. On a big scrap of cardboard Ive painted "No Parking Lot！ Save Our Nature！" in large letters. I sit down and wait. Most people pass by and dont pay any attention to me. A few people ask me what Im doing， and I tell them.

Across the street， Mrs. DiRisio steps out of her beauty shop. Shes angry， I can tell. She marches across 71st without even looking， sending cars screeching8） to a stop. Her eyes are fixed on me. "What is this？" Mrs. DiRisio asks， waving her hand at my sign. My heart is racing. "My customers need a place to park，" she says. "You go home， little girl." She glares9） at me. I swallow10） hard. I feel my sign drop to the ground. I dont stand a chance against angry Mrs. DiRisio.

Then I see Mama and my brothers and sisters coming down the street. Theyre carrying chairs and theyve painted signs. Theyre here to help me！ "Thank you，" I say. Six people are going to get a lot more attention than just one.

The afternoon sun is hot and as I fan myself， I look down the street and notice a woman taking pictures of my corner. She smiles and walks over to me.

"Im Sara Bennett. Can I talk to you？" I look to Mama， but she nods her head in my direction. Im the one who needs to make some noise. I start talking， and Ms. Bennett scribbles11） on a small notepad. "A walking path would be nice，" I say， "and maybe a vegetable garden. And a bench， so people could sit down and listen to the birds singing." Im surprised at myself， at how many ideas Ive got for this corner.

When were done， Ms. Bennett takes a few more pictures and thanks me for my time. I cant believe it！ A real newspaper story about my corner！ Mama hugs me and says， "Im real proud of you， Tia. Youre making things happen. I have a feeling tomorrows going be a big day."

Mama was right. My brothers burst12） into my room the next morning， waving a copy of the morning paper. "Fighting for Nature on the Corner of 71st and Prospect" was the title of the article， and along with it was a picture of me！ We were all jumping up and down and shouting when Mama said， "Hey， dont be throwing a party just yet. Youve got a corner to save."

After breakfast we drag our chairs and signs back to the corner. Im just settling in for a long day when all of a sudden I see my friend Tanya and her family coming down the street. Theyve got chairs and theyre joining us！ "That was quite an article in the paper， Tia，" says Tanyas father. "Youve got some good ideas for this corner." Then Mr. and Mrs. Choi from the second floor show up. "Tia， I think youre right. We need a little nature around here，" Mrs. Choi says.

This isnt just my corner anymore. This is our corner.

A week later weve got people all up and down 71st Street and Prospect waving signs and making noise. Im asked to speak to a group of people from the city. Mama says theyre the ones who will vote on what to do with our corner. My hands start shaking when I spot Mrs. DiRisio in the audience， but I keep my eyes on Mama and I speak in my loudest voice， just like she told me to. "If this is the last little bit of nature in our neighborhood，" I say， "doesnt it make sense to try and save it？" At the end of my speech， everyone applauds and Sara Bennett gives me a big smile. I think secretly shes on our side.

...

Im almost asleep that night when the phone rings. When Mama hangs up the phone， she lets out a whoop13） that probably wakes the entire building！ "You did it， Tia！ The city voted against the parking lot！ You got your nature preserve14）！" Mama hugs me so hard that she lifts me off the ground. Its a night Ill never forget as long as I live.

A year later， the sign on the corner makes it official. Now weve got a walking path that curves and winds its way through the 71st Street Nature Preserve. Weve got a stone bench and plans for a vegetable garden. School groups come here to collect leaves and study the insects and birds. Folks come here to walk， run or just sit. My corner isnt just mine anymore， but Im more than happy to share it.