鲨鱼与美人鱼

by Jennifer Azantian

翻译：Cass

鲨鱼与美人鱼

by Jennifer Azantian

翻译：Cass

Jump， and you will find out how to unfold［张开 】your wings as you fall.

—Ray Douglas Bradbury

Track 7

I stood on the1）edge of the2）diving board and looked down into the deep， dark water. All of the other kids were in the pool，or behind me， waiting for their turn， but I didn’t want to jump. The shadows from the nearby fences and trees3）shaded the water below. I couldn’t see the bottom.

“Come on， jump！” a red-haired boy yelled at me， but I didn’t move. He was the same boy who had told me about the sharks in the swimming pool just a few minutes before. I tried not to believe him. But what if he was right？

My stomach started to hurt badly. Mrs. Johnston came over and put her hand on my back.

“It’s all right，” she said in a gentle voice. “You can do it.”

I wanted to ask her about the sharks， but what if everyone laughed at me？

“Jump already！” the girl behind me in line shouted. I hadn’t meant to jump， not exactly， but suddenly I was falling4）toward the pool.

5）Splash.

I closed my eyes， too scared to look， and just started kicking as hard and as fast as I could. I could almost feel the sharks chasing after me. My nose and my throat hurt from the water that rushed inside. And then， and my face filled with pain. But suddenly I felt the ground.

1） edge ［edʒ】 n. 边缘

2） diving board 跳水板

3） shade ［ʃeId】 v. 遮蔽

4） toward ［tə'wɔːd】 prep. 朝着，向着

5） splash ［splæʃ】 v. 溅

I opened my eyes and found that I was standing in the6）shallow end. I was safe. But then a few drops of red splashed into the water. I had hit my nose on the edge of the pool.

I never wanted to swim again.

Five years later， I still get stomachaches when I try to swim in the7）deep end， especially if there are shadows. Even though I know that there are no sharks， I’m still scared. Only now something has changed. I have a little sister. She is six years old—and she8）looks up to me.

That day was her birthday， and she was having a pool party. She was standing on the diving board. She wasn’t scared of sharks， but she was afraid of looking silly. All of her friends swim better than she does.

All the other kids were eating cakes and running around，but she was all by herself， shaking. And I remembered what that felt like.

Carefully， I swam over to the deep end. I saw shadows from the trees moving with the wind，and I wanted to run away. I wanted to forget about the deep water and sharks， but something more important than my fear made me keep going.

Finally， I made it. My heart was beating hard as I called out to my little sister， “Hey， Lauren， are you okay？”

She shook her head； her blue eyes showed her fear.

I thought about all the stories I used to tell her. And suddenly， I had an idea.

“Lauren， do you see those9）shimmers on the bottom of the pool？”

She looked10）skeptical. “Yeah.”

“They’re11）mermaids，” I said. “Really. You can’t see them because they’re magic， but those shimmers are their12）reflections. And when you jump into deep waters， they’ll help you come up to the top. You’ll feel them around you. It’s like a million little13）bubbles all over.”

“Are you sure？” she said.

“Jump and you’ll see. And besides， I’m here， too. I wouldn’t let anything bad happen to you.”“Okay. I’ll try…”

After a minute， she looked right at me and jumped.

I waited， nervously， and a few seconds later， she broke through the surface.

“Jenny！ Jenny！ I felt them！” my sister waved her arms happily. “You were right！”

I swam over to her， “You did it！ Good job！”

“I want to go， again，” she said.

“You should！” I answered.

“Will the mermaids always help me？”

I laughed， “Yes， always.”

I watched her jumped in again and again. And I forgot my own fears along with hers. The sharks are gone forever.

参考译文

我站在跳水板的边缘，往又深又幽暗的水里望去。其余的小孩，有些已经在泳池里，有些则站在我身后，等着他们的机会，但是我不想跳。泳池附近的栅栏和树木倒映在水面上。我看不见水底。

“快跳！”一个红头发的男孩冲我喊道，但我没有动弹。他就是几分钟前告诉我游泳池里有鲨鱼的那个男孩。我尽量让自己不去相信他。但万一他说的是真的呢？

我的肚子开始疼得厉害。约翰斯顿女士走过来，把手搭在我的背上。

“没事的，”她温柔地说道。“你能做到的。”

我想问她关于鲨鱼的事，但万一所有人都取笑我怎么办？

“已经跳了！”排在我身后的女孩喊道。我其实不想跳，根本不想跳，可突然间我的身体向着游泳池坠落下去。

“扑通”一声。

我闭上了双眼，害怕得不敢看周围，只能以最快的速度使劲地蹬腿。我几乎能够感觉到鲨鱼群在追赶我。我的鼻子和喉咙因进水而十分疼痛。接着，我的整张脸也都感受到了疼痛，但突然却感觉到脚着地了。

我睁开眼睛，发现自己站在泳池的浅水区。我安全了。但接着，有几滴鲜红的液体溅到了水里。原来我的鼻子在泳池的边缘上磕伤了。

自那以后，我再也不想游泳了。

五年后，每当我试着在泳池深水区游泳时，肚子仍然会疼，尤其是在水面有阴影的时候。即便我知道水里并没有鲨鱼，我仍然很害怕。只是现在的情况和以往不同了。我有了一个年幼的妹妹。六岁的她很是崇拜我。

那天是她的生日，她举办了一个泳池派对。她站在跳水板上，并不害怕鲨鱼，却很担心自己会出丑。因为她所有的朋友都比她游得好。

其他的孩子或在吃蛋糕，或在跑来跑去，但是她独自一人，颤抖着。我还记得那是种怎样的感觉。

我小心翼翼地游到深水区。水中可以看到树木随风摇摆的影子，我想逃离。我想忘掉深水和鲨鱼，但此时有比恐惧更重要的东西驱使着我前进。

最后，我成功了。当我向妹妹大声喊着“嘿，劳伦，你还好吗？”的时候，我的心剧烈地跳动着。

她摇摇头；湛蓝的眼睛里显现出恐惧。

我想起了所有以前给她讲过的故事，突然间有了主意。

“劳伦，你看见泳池底那些闪烁的微光了吗？”

她神情疑惑。“看见了。”

“那些是美人鱼，”我说道。“真的。你看不见它们是因为它们会魔法，而这些闪烁的微光就是它们反射出来的。你跳进深水里时，它们会帮助你浮上水面。你会感觉到它们包围着你，就像无数的小泡泡一样。”“你确定吗？”她问道。“你跳下来就知道了。还有，姐姐也在这里。我不会让你有事的。”

“好吧，我试试……”

过了一分钟，她看着我，然后跳进

了水里。

我不安地等着，几秒钟后，她浮出了水面。

“詹妮！詹妮！我感觉到它们了！”妹妹兴高采烈地挥动着手臂。“你说得没错！”

我游到她身边：“你做到了！太棒了！”

“我想再试一次，”她说道。

“去吧！”我回答。

“美人鱼们会一直帮助我吗？”

我大笑着回答：“是的，一直都会。”

我看着她跳了一次又一次。她忘掉了自己的畏惧，而我的恐惧也随之烟消云散。那些鲨鱼也永远不会再出现。

6） shallow end 浅水区

7） deep end 深水区

8） look up to 崇拜，敬仰

9） shimmer ［'ʃImə】 n. 闪光，微光

10） skeptical ［'skeptIkəl】 adj. 怀疑的

11） mermaid ［'mʒːmeId】 n. 美人鱼

12） reflection ［rI'flekʃən】 n. 反射，倒影

13） bubble ［'bʌbəl】 n. 泡沫，气泡

Sharks and Mermaids