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王善武/編譯

How my daughter came to know that there are many ways to live.

我的女兒如何知道有很多生活的方式。

Our daughter,Jill,has two grandmothers who are as different as chalk and cheese. One taught her to count cards and make her face blank when she bluffed at blackjack. The other taught her where to place salad forks. When Jill was three, this grandmother taught her not to touch anything until invited to do so. The other one taught her to slide down carpeted stairs on a cookie sheet.

Both grandmothers are widows. One live in trailer park in Florida from October until May,then moves to an old lake-front camp in Maine for the summer. The camp is a leaning structure filled with furniture impervious to wet swimsuits. Raccoons sleep on the deck every night.

The other grandmother resides in a town house at the Best Address in the City—a regal-looking brick building boasting a security system and plants tended by florists.

One grandmother plays the lottery and bingo. The other plays bridge with monogrammed playing cards. One grandmother wears primary colors,favoring fluorescents when she has a tan;the other wears suits,largely taupe or black.

One grandmother would be delighted to learn that many people think of her as eccentric. The other hopes that people will refer to her as “correct.” This grandmother,when startled,says “Oh,my word”, her strongest expletive. The other one says “hot damn,” or worse.

During Hurricane Bob,one of Jills grandmothers bought her a duckling-yellow slicker and took her to the beach to watch the surf. She believes the ocean throws off positive ions, excellent for growth and peace of mind. While they were experiencing the elements,Jills other grandmother called to make sure we were safe in the cellar.

“Are there many ways to live?” my puzzled six-year-old daughter asked me.

“Yes,” I said gently,“and you may choose which feels right for you.” And,I promised myself,I will let her make her own choice.

Two grandmothers,two different worlds. Both want for Jill no less than the lions share. One will be her anchor; the other,her mainsail.

我們的女兒吉爾有兩個祖母，她們就像是粉筆和奶酪一樣的不同。一個祖母教她數(shù)牌，虛張聲勢地嚇唬人的時候，臉要像張白紙一樣毫無表情。另一個祖母教她應該把色拉叉放到什么地方。當吉爾3歲時，這個祖母教她要等別人邀請時，才碰餐桌上的東西。另一個則教她順著烤板上鋪著地毯的樓梯向下滑。

兩個祖母都是寡婦。一個從祖母10月到次年的5月住在佛羅里達州的一個拖車式活動房屋停車場，然后搬遷到緬因州的一個古老的臨湖平地區(qū)營地度夏。營地是一個傾斜結構，里面擺滿了能經得起濕泳衣侵蝕的家具。晚上，祖母就睡在甲板上。

另一個祖母住在這座城市的繁華地帶。這是一個如帝王般奢華的磚制樓房，內有一套安全系統(tǒng)和花卉學家呵護的盆景植物。

一位祖母玩彩票和賓戈（一種賭博游戲，譯者注），另一位玩有交織字母的橋牌；一位祖母穿原色衣服，如果她有一件褐色的衣服，她喜歡把它裝點上熒光，使之容光煥發(fā)，另一位穿套裝，主要是褐灰色或黑色。

一位祖母獲悉很多人認為她行為古怪，舉止怪僻時，總是大喜過望，另一位希望人們總認為她是“舉止合宜的”。這位祖母在受到驚嚇時最為強烈的感嘆是“哎呀！”，另一位愛說“真他媽的該死”，或者更為強烈過激的話。

在鮑勃颶風期間，吉爾的一個祖母帶給她一個鴨黃色的磨光器，并帶她去海灘看沖浪。這個祖母相信海洋能去除陽離子，這對人的成長和養(yǎng)神安寧大有裨益。當她們在體驗這種愜意的環(huán)境時，吉爾的另一個祖母打電話來，想得到我們在地下室里相安無事的確切消息。

“人們有很多生活的方式嗎？”我那迷惑不解的6歲女兒問我。

“是的，”我柔聲地說，“你可以選擇你覺得對你合適的方式。”我對自己承諾，我一定讓她做出自己的選擇。

兩位祖母，兩個不同的世界，兩個都很喜歡吉爾，希望她得到最多的疼愛，一個愿意成為她的靠山，另一個則愿意成為她的主帆。