《瓶中信》节选

Nicholas Sparks(尼古拉斯·斯帕克思,1965— )是当今享誉世界的畅销小说家。他的作品曾七次登上《纽约时报》畅销书排行榜第一名,全世界总销量超过5000万册,并已被译成40多种语言。另外,他的作品中已有四部被搬上了电影荧幕,分别是《瓶中信》、《罗丹岛之恋》、《初恋的回忆》和《恋恋笔记本》,纷纷轰动一时。

现在流行的漂流瓶，似乎有将素昧蒙面的人，千里一线牵进行到底!一起来欣赏这封瓶中信吧……

Dear Theresa,

Can you forgive me?

In a world that I seldom understand, there are winds of destiny that blow when we least expect them. Sometimes they 1)gust with the fury of a hurricane; sometimes they barely 2)fan one’s cheek. But the winds cannot be denied, bringing as they often do a future that is impossible to ignore. You, my darling, are the wind that I did not anticipate, the wind that has gusted more strongly than I ever imagined possible. You are my destiny.

I was wrong, so wrong, to ignore what was obvious, and I beg your forgiveness. Like a cautious traveler, I tried to protect myself from the wind and lost my soul instead. I was a fool to ignore my destiny, but even fools have feelings, and I’ve come to realize that you are the most important thing that I have in this world.

…

亲爱的特瑞莎:

你能原谅我吗?

在这个我不怎么能理解的世界里,命运之风总是会出其不意地吹向我们,时而如暴风来袭,时而如轻风拂面。但是不管什么样的风,人们是无法拒绝的,随之带来的还有让人无法忽视的未来。亲爱的,你是让我始料不及的那股风,那股甚至比我能够想象到的还要强烈的风。你就是我的“命运”。

我错了,错得如此厉害,不该忽视如此显而易见的东西, 我请求得到你的原谅。我就像一个谨慎的旅行者,努力避免受到风的吹袭,却反而失去了自己的灵魂。我太傻了,竟忽视了自己的命运。但是,即使傻子也是有感情的,所以我开始认识到,你是我在这个世界上遇到的最重要的人。

……

For the first few days after you left, I wanted to believe that I could go on as I always had. But I couldn’t. Every time I watched the sun go down, I thought of you. Every time I walked by the phone, I yearned to call. Even when I went sailing, I could only think of you and the wonderful times we had. I knew in my heart that my life would never be the same again. I wanted you back, more than I imagined possible, yet whenever I 3)conjured you up, I kept hearing your words in our last conversation. No matter how much I loved you, I knew it wasn’t going to be possible unless we—both of us—were sure I would devote myself fully to the path that lay ahead. I continued to be troubled by these thoughts until late last night when the answer finally came to me. Hopefully, after I tell you about it, it will mean as much to you as it did to me:

在你离开后的最初几天里,我曾想相信自己能够像以往那样继续生活。但是,我做不到。每次看到夕阳西下,我就想起你。每次经过电话机旁,我都禁不住想打电话给你。甚至出海航行的时候,我脑海里也都只想着你,以及我们曾经一起度过的美好时光。我打心底里明白到我的生活不可能再像以前那样了。我想要你回到我身边,这种渴望程度已经超乎了我的想象。然而,每次想起你的时候,我耳边总是会响起最后一次谈话时你所说的那些话。无论我有多爱你,我知道,除非我们——我们双 方——都确信我能够全心全意地投身于面前的这条路,否则一切都不可能实现。一直以来我都被这些想法困扰着,直到昨天晚上,终于有了答案。希望当我告诉你之后,你会跟我一样欣喜。

In my dream, I saw myself on the beach with Catherine; in the same spot I took you after our lunch at Hank’s. It was bright in the sun, the rays reflecting brilliantly off the sand. As we walked alongside each other, she listened intently as I told her about you, about us, about the wonderful times we shared. Finally, after some hesitation, I admitted that I loved you, but that I felt guilty about it. She said nothing right away but simply kept walking until she finally turned to me and asked, “Why?” “Because of you.”

在我梦里,我看见自己与凯瑟琳走在沙滩上,跟那次在汉克家吃完午饭后我带你去的是同一个地方。那时阳光很明媚,光线折射在沙滩上,很耀眼。我们肩并肩地走着,她专心地听着我讲述你,讲述我们,以及我们一起分享的那些美好时光。最后,几经犹豫,我终于向她承认了我对你的爱,同时却又为此而愧疚。她没有马上回答我,只是一直走,最后转向我,问道:“为什么觉得愧疚?”“因为你。”