英漢對照：Go Ahead Gallivant 去和陌生人說話

 

Go Ahead Gallivant   去和陌生人說話  
 —By Linda Ellerbee

    "Go on over there, Linda." My mother pointed to a group of kids playing tug of war." Tell them who you are." Aw, Mama. Who am I? I’m a shy little girl who doesn’t want to ask a bunch of ferocious-looking strangers to let me play with them. They won’t like me, and I won’t like them, so please couldn’t I just go and sit under a tree and read something?No, I can’t. Mama gave me a small shove.Unwillingly, I introduced myself and asked to join in whatever they were doing. They accepted me and for the rest of the summer I played with them. Often, I wouldn’t return to my family until forced by dark or dinnertime.
   我的媽媽指著一群正在玩拔河遊戲的小孩對我說：“琳達，去和他們一塊玩，告訴他們你是誰。”嘿，媽媽。我是誰？我是一個害羞的小女孩，我不想和一幫長相凶惡的陌生人一塊玩。他們不喜歡我，我也不喜歡他們，所以請讓我坐在樹下讀會兒書，好不好？這完全不可能，媽媽已經把我推了出來。我極不情願地介紹了一下自己，然後請求和他們一塊玩。他們接受了我，那個夏天剩下的日子，我都跟他們一塊玩，而且是通常玩到天黑或者是吃晚飯的時間才不得不回家。

   I think about that childhood experience every time an American tells me he’s afraid to travel abroad since the events of 9/11, and that people out there don’t like Americans anymore. But I have been "out there" often in the last four years, and I’ve found that, although some people may disagree with our government’s policies, they rarely transfer that to me.
   經常聽人講，9·11恐怖事件之後，不敢到其他國家去旅行，而且其他國家的人也不再喜歡美國人，每當這個時候我就會想起那次童年時代的旅行。最近這四年我一直在國外旅行，而且我感覺雖然一些人對美國政府當局的政策不滿意，但是他們很少遷怒於我。

   Last April, in Alexandria, Egypt, our group, all Americans, was told to stay together, to travel only in the specially arranged bus, the one with the armored car escort. The "or else" was implied. Another journalist and I ignored the warnings and struck out on our own, on foot, to get up close and personal with the old city by the old sea, and its citizens.We wandered markets, buying and eating freshly made bread. We went into stores. We sat in street cafes and drank coffee that tasted(to me) like mud, but, hey, it was Egyptian mud, so call it an adventure.
   去年四月，我跟隨旅遊團到埃及的亞曆山大去旅遊。導遊勸告團裏的每一個美國人：大家要呆在一起，出行時要乘坐一輛有裝甲車護送的特別為美國人安排的大巴。言外之意是說，否則一切後果將由自己負責。我和另外一個記者無視警告，我行我素，我們徒步走訪了這座屹立在古老的地中海沿岸的曆史悠久的城市和生活在那裏的人們。我們逛著集市，吃著剛出爐的麵包。我們逛商場。我們坐在街邊的咖啡店裏喝咖啡，埃及的咖啡與眾不同，喝起來有一種泥巴的味道，但即使是泥巴也是埃及泥巴，這也可以稱得上是一次奇特的經曆.

   And then, walking down a crowded street, we heard behind us the sound of pounding feet and somebody yelling at us. We turned to see what was going on. A man was chasing us. We looked at each other. Had we made a mistake? Would now be a good time to start running? Before we could decide, the man caught up with us and grabbed my arm. Panting and wild-eyed, he paused to catch his breath, then smiled and handed me the half-empty plastic bottle of water I’d accidentally left in his store (where I’d bought nothing). He’d run six blocks to return it.I thanked him, and then inquired where he and his family went to eat the freshest fish in town. He smiled again and told us where to go, even what to order, apologizing because he could not leave his store long enough to join us.He was right about the restaurant, which was good and filled with other Egyptians who seemed happy to see us —or at least not offended by our presence.
   當我們沿著一條擁擠的街道向前走的時候，我們聽到後麵有急促的腳步聲和喊叫聲。我們轉過身看到有人在追趕我們。我們彼此對視，心想我們犯了什麽錯嗎？我們是否應該馬上跑？在我們還沒有做出決定的時候，那個人已經追上了我們，並一把抓住我的胳膊。他跑得氣喘籲籲，兩眼發直；停下來喘了口氣之後，他微笑著把我不小心落在他店裏的半塑料瓶水遞給我（我在他那兒什麽也沒買）。他追了六個街區送還給我。我向他表示感謝，然後谘詢他和家人常去的鎮上能吃到最新鮮的魚的地方。他又一次向我們微笑，然後告訴我們該怎麽走，甚至還告訴我們點什麽菜，並因為他不能離開他的店鋪太久去和我們一同品嚐而表示歉意。他指點的飯店很棒，而且在這裏就餐的埃及人看起來對我們也很友好——至少是不討厭我們。

   If we do go elsewhere, if we meet people from other cultures, if we break bread with them or simply taste their bread, which is, presumably, different from our own, we cannot help but discover that essentially we are all more alike than we are different; it’s only that our differences are so much easier to define.
   當我們來到不同的地方，當我們遇到有著不同文化背景的人的時候，如果我們能拿出麵包與他們分享或者隻是品嚐一下他們的麵包——我們總是想當然地認為那麵包與美國的麵包不同，我們就會禁不住發現，實質上我們與他們之間的相同之處大於不同之處，隻是因為不同之處是那麽顯而易見。 

   My parents were right to push me all those years ago. So now I’m pushing you.Go on out there. Tell them who you are. Ask who they are. Listen to the answers.
I know we can’t all play together, but perhaps if we begin to get to know one another, we can get past our mutual fears and learn how to be, if not friends, at least better strangers to one another.
   多年以前我的父母是對的，他們把我帶出了那個小圈子。今天我也要把你們帶出那個小圈子。走出去吧，告訴他們你是誰，問問他們是誰，傾聽不一樣的聲音。我清楚我們不可能和所有人成為朋友，但是如果我們開始去了解別人，就能消除我們與其他人之間的戒心，即使不做朋友，至少彼此也不很陌生。

Notes:

1. gallivant v.遊蕩,閑逛

2. ferocious-looking 看起來凶巴巴的

3. strike out獨力闖新路,開辟(道路等)

4. pounding feet沉重的腳步聲

作者簡介：
      Linda Ellerbee (born August 15, 1944) is a journalist who is most known for several jobs at NBC News, including Washington (DC) correspondent, host of the Nickelodeon network's Nick News, and reporter and co-anchor of NBC News Overnight, which was recognized by the duPont Columbia Awards as "the best written and most intelligent news program ever."