第8章 爱，永远禁不起等待 (7)
2. For cutting the grass $5.00
3. For cleaning up my room this week $1. 00
4. For going to the store for you $0. 50
5. Baby—sitting my kid brother while you went shopping $0. 25
6. Taking out the garbage $1. 00
7. For getting a good report card $5. 00
8. For cleaning up and raking the yard $2. 00
9. Total owed： $14.75
10. Well，I’ll tell you，his mother looked at him standing there expectantly，and boy，could I see the memories flashing through her mind. So she picked up the pen，turned over the paper he’d written on，and this is what she wrote：
11. For the nine months I carried you while you were growing inside me，No Charge.
12. For all the nights that I’ve sat up with you，doctored and prayed for you，No Charge.
13. For all the trying times，and all the tears that you’ve caused through the years，there’s No Charge.
14. For all the nights that were filled with dread，and for the worries I knew were ahead，No Charge.
15. For the toys，food，clothes，and even wiping your nose，there’s No Charge，Son.
16. When you add it all up，the cost of my love is No Charge.
17. Well，friends，when our son finished reading what his mother had written，there were great big old tears in his eyes，and he looked straight up at his mother and said：“Mom，I sure do love you.” And then he took the pen and in great big letters he wrote：“PAID IN FULL”.
1. 一天晚上我们的小儿子来到厨房，他妈妈正在那儿做晚饭。他递给妈妈一张已经写好字的纸。妈妈在围裙上擦干手后，看到上面写着：
2. 割草 ５美元
3. 本周打扫自己的房间 １美元
4. 替你跑商店 50美分
5. 当你购物时看护小弟弟 ２５美分
6. 倒垃圾 １美元
7. 拿到优异的成绩单 ５美元
8. 清理庭园并耙草、叶 ２美元
9. 总计：14.75美元
10. 好的，我告诉你，他妈妈看到他期待地站在边上，孩子，我怎么能想到。她灵光一闪，拿起笔，把那张纸翻过来，她写道：
11. 在我肚子里怀你９个月，让你慢慢长大，一分都不收。
12. 为你熬的每个夜晚，照料呵护你，一分都不收。
13. 多年来由你引起的难熬时光以及为你流的泪，一分都不收。
14. 为充满恐惧和担心的日日夜夜，一分都不收。
15. 玩具、食物、衣服，还有给你擦鼻子，一分都没收，孩子。
16. 当你把所有这些全部加起来时，我全部的真爱，一分都不收。
17. 朋友，当我们的儿子读完他妈妈写的这些，他的眼睛中闪烁着晶莹的泪花，抬头看着他妈妈说：“妈妈，我真的爱你。”然后，他拿起笔写了几个大大的字：“全部偿付”。
Hanover Square追忆似水年华
1. Can it really be sixty-two years ago that I first saw you？
2. It is truly a lifetime， I know. But as I gaze into your eyes now， it seems like only yesterday that I first saw you， in that small cafe in Hanover Square.
3. From the moment I saw you smile， as you opened the door for that young mother and her newborn baby. I knew. I knew that I wanted to share the rest of my life with you.
4. I still think of how foolish I must have looked， as I gazed at you， that first time. I remember watching you intently， as you took off your hat and loosely shook your short dark hair with your fingers. I felt myself becoming immersed in your every detail， as you placed your hat on the table and cupped your hands around the hot cup of tea， gently blowing the steam away with your pouted lips.
5. From that moment， everything seemed to make perfect sense to me. The people in the café and the busy street outside all disappeared into a hazy blur. All I could see was you.
6. All through my life I have relived that very first day. Many， many times I have sat and thought about that the first day， and how for a few fleeting moments I am there， feeling again what is like to know true love for the very first time. It pleases me that I can still have those feelings now after all those years， and I know I will always have them to comfort me.
7. Not even as I shook and trembled uncontrollably in the trenches， did I forget your face. I would sit huddled into the wet mud， terrified， as the hails of bullets and mortars crashed down around me. I would clutch my rifle tightly to my heart， and think again of that very first day we met. I would cry out in fear， as the noise of war beat down around me. But， as I thought of you and saw you smiling back at me， everything around me would be become silent， and I would be with you again for a few precious moments， far from the death and destruction. It would not be until I opened my eyes once again， that I would see and hear the carnage of the war around me.
8. I cannot tell you how strong my love for you was back then， when I returned to you on leave in the September， feeling battered， bruised and fragile. We held each other so tight I thought we would burst. I asked you to marry me the very same day and I whooped with joy when you looked deep into my eyes and said "yes" to being my bride.
9. I’m looking at our wedding photo now， the one on our dressing table， next to your jeweler box. I think of how young and innocent we were back then. I remember being on the church steps grinning like a Cheshire cat， when you said how dashing and handsome I looked in my uniform. The photo is old and faded now， but when I look at it， I only see the bright vibrant colors of our youth. I can still remember every detail of the pretty wedding dress your mother made for you， with its fine delicate lace and pretty pearls. If I concentrate hard enough， I can smell the sweetness of your wedding bouquet as you held it so proudly for everyone to see.
10. I remember being so over enjoyed， when a year later， you gently held my hand to your waist and whispered in my ear that we were going to be a family.
11. I know both our children love you dearly； they are outside the door now， waiting.
12. Do you remember how I panicked like a mad man when Jonathon was born？ I can still picture you laughing and smiling at me now， as I clumsily held him for the very first time in my arms. I watched as your laughter faded into tears， as I stared at him and cried my own tears of joy.