[美國]馬克·吐溫/Mark Twain
馬克·吐溫（1835-1910），美國傑出的小說家，美國文學史上最重要的作家之一，也是美國文學史上第一個用口語進行寫作的作家，開創了一代文風，被福克納稱為“美國文學之父”。馬克·吐溫幼年家境貧寒，被迫放棄學業外出謀生。豐富的生活經曆對他後期的創作影響很大。19世紀70年代到90年代是他創作的鼎盛時期，其代表作有《哈克貝利·費恩曆險記》和它的姊妹篇《湯姆·索亞曆險記》等。
She was 82 and living in Keoluk when, unaccountably, she insisted upon attending a convention of old settlers of the Mississippi Valley. All the way there, and it was some distance, she was young again with excitement and eagerness. At the hotel she asked immediately for Dr. Barrett, of St. Louis. He had left for home that morning and would not be back, she was told. She turned away, the fire all gone from her, and asked to go home. Once there she sat silent and thinking for many days, then told us that when she was 18 she had loved a young medical student with all her heart. There was a misunderstanding and he left the country;she had immediately married, to show him that she did not care. She had never seen him since and then she had read in a newspaper that he was going to attend the old settlers'convention.“Only three hours before we reached that hotel he had been there,”she mourned.
She had kept that pathetic burden in her heart 64 years without any of us suspecting it. Before the year was out, her memory began to fail. She would write letters to school-mates who had been dead 40 years and wonder why they never answered. Four years later she died.
當時她82歲，住在克勒克城，不知為何，她堅持要參加密西西比河穀的老居民大會。路途有點遠，但是，一路上興奮熱切的心情仿佛使她又回到年輕時代。她一到旅館，便立即打聽從聖路易來的巴雷特醫生的消息。得知他當天早上就回家了，而且不再回來，她興致全無，調頭便要回家。回到家，她默默地坐著，沉思了幾天後，才告訴我們，18歲時她曾衷心愛過一位學醫的青年學生。不料發生了一次誤會，他出國了，而她閃電般地結婚，以示她毫不在乎。從那以後她再也沒有見過他，然而，她從報紙上得知他將參加今年的老居民大會。“要是早到三小時，我就能在旅店見到他了。”她歎息道。
她把這份情感的重負藏在心裏長達64年之久，始終不讓我們任何人猜測到。那年快結束時，她的記憶力開始衰退。她寫信給已過世40年的老同學，而不明白她們為什麽從不回信。四年之後她就去世了。
詞匯筆記
misunderstanding[,mis?nd?'st?ndi?]n.誤解；誤會
We try to preclude any possibility of misunderstanding.
我們力圖消除任何誤解的可能性。
mourn[m?：n]v.為……哀痛；向……致哀
One must mourn not the death of men but their birth.
人要悲傷的並不是人類的死亡而是他們的誕生。
pathetic[p?'θetik]adj.淒慘的；可憐的；毫無成功希望的
A man emotionally in love can be pathetic.
一個真正陷入愛河的人是很悲慘的。
suspect[s?'spekt]v.懷疑；不信任
It was then I began to suspect that my father had wanted to mend the breach as much as I had.
就是從那一刻起，我開始猜想，父親肯定曾經想過要修複我們的裂痕，就跟我曾經想過的一樣。
小試身手
一路上興奮熱切的心情仿佛使她又回到年輕時代。
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她興致全無，調頭便要回家。
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她把這份情感的重負藏在心裏長達64年之久，始終不讓我們任何人猜測到。
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短語家族
She turned away, the fire all gone from her, and asked to go home.
turn away：避開；走開；轉過臉
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Once there she sat silent and thinking for many days, then told us that when she was 18 she had loved a young medical student with all her heart.
with all one's heart：十分願意地；全心全意地
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