A legacy' of Love--爱的遗赠

As a young man, Al was a skilled artist, a potter. He had a wife and two fine sons. One night, his oldest son developed a severe stomachache. Thinking it was only some common intestinal disorder, neither Al nor his wife took the condition very seriously. But the malady was actually acute appendicitis, and the boy died suddenly that night.

阿尔年轻的时候，是一个制陶能手。他有妻有子，两个儿子都很棒。一天晚上，他的长子腹部疼的厉害。但是阿尔和妻子都以为这只是普通的肠道疾病，而没有多加注意。但是男孩得的却是急性阑尾炎，当晚便突然病逝了。

Knowing the death could have been prevented if he had only realized the seriousness of the situation, Al's emotional health deteriorated under the enormous burden of his guilt. To make matters worse his wife left him a short time later, leaving him alone with his six-year-old younger son. The hurt and pain of the two situations were more than Al could handle, and he turned to alcohol to help him cope. In time Al became an alcoholic.

如果他能稍微意识到儿子病情的严重性，儿子的死本来是完全可以避免的，正是由于背负这样巨大的负罪感，阿尔的精神状态急转直下。不久之后，他的妻子也离开了他，留下了他与6岁的小儿子相依为命，这使局面更加恶化了。阿尔受不了这两件事给他带来的打击和痛苦，只能借酒浇愁。没过多久，他就变成了一个酒鬼。

As the alcoholism progressed, Al began to lose everything he possessed--his home, his hand, his art objects, everything. Eventually Al died alone in a San Franisco motel room.

随着对酒精的迷恋越来越深，阿尔失去了原本拥有的一切——他的家、他的土地、他的艺术作品、一切的一切......最后，阿尔在旧金山的一家汽车旅馆里孤独地死去了。

When I heard of Al's death, I reacted with the same disdain the world shows for one who ends his life with nothing material to show for it. "What a complete failure!" I thought."What a totally wasted life!"

当我听到阿尔去世的消息后，我对他的蔑视恰如世人对那些死后没给子孙留下任何遗产者的蔑视一样。“多么彻底的失败呀！”我心想。“真是白活了！”

As time went by, I began to re-evaluate my earlier harsh judgment. You see, I knew Al's now adult son, Ernie. He is one of the kindest, most caring, most loving men I have ever known. I watched Ernie with his children and saw the free flow of love between them. I knew that kindness and caring had to come from somewhere.

可随着时间的流逝，我开始重新评估自己早年对阿尔的苛刻评断。因为，我认识了阿尔现已成年的小儿子，厄尼。他是我所认识的最仁爱的人之一。我观察着厄尼和他的孩子们，看见他们之间自然洋溢的关爱之情。我知道那种仁慈和爱心一定不是凭空而来。

I hadn't heard Ernie talk much about his father. It is so hard to defend an alcoholic. One day I worked up my courage to ask him."I'm really puzzled by something,"I said."I know your father was basically the only one to raise you. What on earth did he do that you became such a special person?"

我很少听到厄尔谈论他的父亲。要为一个酒鬼辩护是多么困难啊。一天，我鼓起勇气问他。“有一件事使我感到很迷惑，”我说。“我知道你主要是由你的父亲抚养长大的。那么他究竟是如何使你成为这样一个出色的人呢？”

Ernie sat quietly and reflected for a few moments. Then he said, "From my earliest memories as a child until I left home at 18, Al came into my room every night, gave me a kiss and said,'I love you, son.'"

我很少听到厄尔谈论他的父亲。要为一个酒鬼辩护是多么困难啊。一天，我鼓起勇气问他。“有一件事使我感到很迷惑，”我说。“我知道你主要是由你的父亲抚养长大的。那么他究竟是如何使你成为这样一个出色的人呢？”

Ernie sat quietly and reflected for a few moments. Then he said, "From my earliest memories as a child until I left home at 18, Al came into my room every night, gave me a kiss and said,'I love you, son.'"

厄尼静静地坐着，思索了一会儿。然后他说：“从我记事起一直到18岁离开家，阿尔每天晚上都要到我的房间里来，吻我一下说：‘我爱你，儿子。’”

Tears came to my eyes as I realized what a fool I had been to judge Al as a failure. He had not left any material possessions behind. But he had been a kind loving father, and he left behind one of the finest, most giving men I have ever known.

我的眼睛湿润了，我意识到我过去觉得阿尔是一个失败者的想法是多么愚蠢。他虽然没有给儿子留下什么物质财富，但是他用一个父亲的仁慈和爱心，培养出了一个如此善良无私的儿子。