旅居海外……和回乡颂

屈联西

　　核心提示：每年这个时候，太阳一落山法国的南部就变得寒冷刺骨。只有对于待到劳动节就离开的人来说，这里的气候才与加利福尼亚相仿，而这里根本没有劳动节。
　　This time of year the South of France turns freezing when the sun goes down. The climate is only like California for those who leave before Labor Day，which doesn't exist here. The giant sycamores lining the street into our village change color every year just as my beloved St. Louis Cardinals are eliminated from the playoffs. All spring and summer they're strong and beautiful and suddenly they're withering until they fall ignominiously，breaking my heart.It happens with the leaves too.
　　每年这个时候，太阳一落山法国的南部就变得寒冷刺骨。只有对于待到劳动节就离开的人来说，这里的气候才与加利福尼亚相仿，而这里根本没有劳动节。进我们村的街道两旁高大的法国梧桐每年变颜色的过程就像我钟爱的圣路易斯红雀队在季后赛中遭淘汰一样。它们在整个春天和夏天都高大挺拔漂亮无比，突然间就开始枯萎凋零，直到最后屈辱地倒下，令我伤心不已。树上的叶子也是同样的遭遇。
　　And as each fall creeps toward winter I'm confronted with an advancing life that feels less American than my dreams：Halloween here is a macabre affair devoid of ingenuity，dominated by cheap-looking witches and white-faced ghouls. Last year I dressed as an evil clown and walked up my street dragging a rusty scythe，which I found hilarious until eight policemen showed up.
　　每当秋天慢慢捱向冬天的时候，我都不得不过着一种不像我梦想中那样纯粹的美国式生活——这里的万圣节是一个毫无创造力可言的可怕节日，到处都是一些看上去俗气的女巫和白脸的盗墓者。去年，我打扮成一个邪恶的小丑拖着一把生锈的镰刀走上街头，我觉得这身装扮滑稽可笑，结果却招来8名警察。
　　But the worst part of the onset of year's-end is the feeling that I've done so much less than I knew I would back in January. And that I'm running out of time.
　　但是，年终来临的最糟糕事情是下面这种感觉——我做到的事情与1月份时我认为自己能做到的相比大打折扣。而且我已经没有多少时间。
　　Work continues to go，but less well than I convince myself it would if I had stayed in the US. I will never be the CEO of Uber. We didn't drive to Italy this year and I still haven't been to Prague. The Cannes Film Festival is just down the road but the only movies I watched were on airplanes. I'm losing hope that I will ever be in as good a shape as I was in 2010.
　　工作还在继续干，但是远没有我认为自己如果待在美国的话那么有成效。我永远也不会成为优步公司的首席执行官。我们今年没有开车去意大利，我到现在还没去过布拉格。戛纳电影节就在咫尺之遥的地方，而我唯一看过的电影都是在飞机上看的。我对自己保持像2010年时那样的好身材再也不抱希望。
　　For the 9th year in a row I will be asleep when my parents sit down at the Thanksgiving table. As Christmas approaches and the incessant December rain falls in Mougins，my siblings will surround my parents'enormous Christmas tree while their children are outside jumping on the trampoline in the sunshine. Those beautiful American images will tear my heart out.
　　连续第9年，当我的父母坐在桌边庆祝感恩节的时候，我将在沉睡。在圣诞节临近、穆然(法国地名——本网注)迎来12月份的连绵冬雨时，我的兄弟姐妹们将围绕在父母家中巨大的圣诞树旁，他们的孩子将在户外灿烂的阳光中蹦蹦床。想到美国的这些温馨画面会让我心碎欲绝。
　　But each year here has its rewards.
　　但是，每年待在这里也有好处。
　　A few weeks ago a photographer came from America and took pictures of the six of us，in the old village and at the beach. It was the same photographer we had eight years ago when we were new here，taking photos in the same spots. To see my children grown，and my wife even more lovely than she was then，reminded me that time can make life more rich. And in May when I saw my oldest daughter in San Francisco for the first time in nine months，I broke into tears as we embraced. Living so far from those most important helps one realize love transcends distance and time，reassuring that it can last forever. I think we all need that.
　　几周前，一名摄影师从美国过来，给我们六个人在这个古老村庄的海滩边拍照。8年前我们刚到这里的时候，正是这位摄影师在同样的地点为我们拍照。看到孩子们长大成人而我的妻子比那时更加可爱，我联想到时间可以让生活更加丰富多彩。5月，当我在旧金山看到分别9个月的大女儿时，我们拥抱在一起，我的眼泪夺眶而出。与自己生命中最重要的人相距遥远有助于人们认识到爱能超越距离和时间，让人相信爱可以天长地久。我想这个我们都需要。
　　I work often in Paris so rent a tiny hovel on the first floor of a building that gets no sunlight. I have never met a neighbor. One day in June I was locked out by accident，but the weather was so good I decided to spend the night on the roof. As I climbed out an open window from the 6th floor the view literally took my breath away：there was the Eiffel Tower，bigger and more beautiful than even at sunset from Trocadero. Three working years I've spent at this apartment and had no idea such a view existed.
　　我经常在巴黎工作，所以在一栋照不到阳光的大楼的一楼租了一个小房间。我从来没有碰到过一个邻居。6月份的一天，我被意外锁在了门外，但是天气非常好，所以我决定爬到屋顶上过一晚。当我从6楼一个敞开的窗户爬出去时，眼前的景象真的让我叹为观止——埃菲尔铁塔矗立在那里，比日落时从特罗卡德罗公园看到的还大、还漂亮。我在这个公寓里工作了3年时间，但从来不知道有这样的景象存在。
　　It was like most everything around here：a little late，a little hushed，but worth it to have been there. I can't say I have any regrets.
　　这就像这里几乎所有的东西一样：有点晚、有点悄无声息，但是值得来过。我说不出自己还有什么遗憾。