完结：<FOR I HAVE TOUCHED THE SKY曾经翱翔（暂定名...
2006-11-13 15:35:23 来自: 小米
| 标题：完结：<FOR I HAVE TOUCHED THE SKY曾经翱翔（暂定名，有建议拍啊）> | ||
FOR I HAVE TOUCHED THE SKY
曾经翱翔
{JANUARY 2131}
Mike Resnick
There was a time when men had wings.
曾几何时，人类拥有过翅膀。
Ngai（1）, who sits alone on His golden throne atop Kirinyaga, （2）gave men the gift of flight, so that they might reach the succulent fruits on the highest branches of the trees. But one man, a son of Gikuyu, who was himself the first man, saw the eagle and the vulture riding high upon the winds, and spreading his wings, he joined them. He circled higher and higher, and soon he soared far above all other flying things.
光明圣地之巅，恩迦独坐在他的黄金神座上，赐予人们飞翔的本领。这样一来，他们就能采撷树巅枝叶上丰硕的果实。然而人类祖先奇库尤之子，望见了鹰与秃鹰在乘风翱翔，便展翅高飞，加入其中。他盘旋直上，顷刻之间，即凌驾于万物之上。
注：1.原文Ngai. 天神，掌管光明和智慧的仙人
2原文Kirinyaga：肯尼亚山这座非洲的第二高峰被当地Kikuyu人视为天神Ngai的神圣王国。传统上，所有Kikuyu的房子都面向这座神圣的高峰，他们称之为Kirinyaga，意为光明之地。
Then, suddenly, the hand of Ngai reached out and grabbed the son of Gikuyu.
突然，恩迦伸出手，攫住了奇库尤之子。
"What have I done that you should grab me thus?" asked the son of Gikuyu.
“我做了什么？为什么要抓住我？”奇库尤之子问道。
"I live atop Kirinyaga because it is the top of the world," answered Ngai, "and no one's head may be higher than my own."
恩迦回道：“吾居于光明圣地之巅，因其乃世界之巅，当无人凌我之上。”
And so saying, Ngai plucked the wings from the son of Gikuyu, and then took the wings away from all men, so that no man could ever again rise higher than His head.
说着，恩迦扯去了他的翅膀，剥夺了人类飞翔的能力。从此，再无人能凌驾于其之上。
And that is why all of Gikuyu's descendants look at the birds with a sense of loss and envy, and why they no longer eat the succulent fruits from the highest branches of the trees.
这就是为何，奇库尤的后裔望着天空飞鸟的神情中，总是夹杂着失落与艳羡。这就是为何，他们再未享用过，树巅枝叶上丰硕的果实。
We have many birds on the world of Kirinyaga, which was named for the holy mountain where Ngai dwells. We brought them along with our other animals when we received our charter from the Eutopian Council and departed from a Kenya that no longer had any meaning for true members of the Kikuyu tribe. Our new world is home to the maribou and the vulture, the ostrich and the fish eagle, the weaver and the heron, and many other species. Even I, who am the mundumugu, delight in their many colors, and find solace in their music. I have spent many afternoons seated in front of my boma, my back propped up against an ancient acacia tree, watching the profusion of colors and listening to the melodic songs as the birds come to slake their thirst in the river that winds through our village.
众多鸟类盘旋于光明圣地的上空（恩迦所居圣山的名字）。当收到来自尤托比亚议会的特许证时，我们带着鸟类和其他动物，迁离了肯尼亚。如今的肯尼亚，对任何一个纯粹的基库尤族民来讲，都已不再有留恋的价值。我们迁往的新世界，是秃鹳与秃鹰，鸵鸟与鱼鹰，织巢鸟与苍鹭，以及众多生灵的家园。就连身为巫医的我，也不免浸悦于这丰富的色彩中，自他们鸣奏的乐章中寻找抚慰。不知有多少个午后，我坐在我的石堡前，背倚苍天古树，注视着这斑斓的色彩，聆听着鸟儿们汲水止渴时，响彻村庄的天籁之曲。
It was on one such afternoon that Kamari, a young girl who was not yet of circumcision age, walked up the long, winding path that separates my boma from the village, holding something small and gray in her hands.
正是在这样的一个午后，那个尚不到行割礼年龄的小女孩卡玛莉，沿着将村庄与我的石堡分割开的蜿蜒曲径，向我走来。她的双手，还抓着个灰色的小东西。
"Jambo, Koriba," she greeted me.
“您好，柯利巴，”她向我致敬。
"Jambo, Kamari," I answered her. "What have you brought to me, child?"
“您好，卡玛莉，”我回道。“孩子，你带来的是什么？”
"This," she said, holding out a young pygmy falcon that struggled weakly to escape her grasp. "I found him in my family's shamba. He cannot fly."
“是这个。”她说着，将手伸过来，原来是只侏隼的幼崽。他虚弱的挣扎着，想脱离她的束缚。“在我家农场发现的。他不能飞了。”
"He looks fully fledged," I noted, getting to my feet. Then I saw that one of his wings was held at an awkward angle. "Ah!" I said. "He has broken his wing."
“他看起来羽翼已经丰满了。”我边说边站起身来，旋即注意到，他一侧的翅膀看起来有些不便。“啊！是翅膀断了。”我说道。
"Can you make him well, mundumugu?" asked Kamari.
“您能治好他么，巫医？”卡玛莉问我。
I examined the wing briefly, while she held the young falcon's head away from me. Then I stepped back.
我大略检查了一下翅膀的伤势，她远远地抓着幼隼的头，免得伤到我。完后，我又坐回原处。
"I can make him well, Kamari," I said. "But I cannot make him fly. The wing will heal, but it will never be strong enough to bear his weight again. I think we will destroy him."
“我能治好他的伤，卡玛莉。”我说道。“但无法让他飞翔。伤能痊愈，但翅膀会变得柔弱，不再能承载他的重量。我想，我们结束了他的生命吧。”
"No!" she exclaimed, pulling the falcon back. "You will make him live, and I will care for him!"
“不！”她惊呼，紧抱住幼隼。“你把他治好，我会照顾他的。”
I stared at the bird for a moment, then shook my head. "He will not wish to live," I said at last.
我盯着这只鸟看了好一会儿，摇了摇头，最终说道：“他已经失去了求生的欲望。”
"Why not?"
“为什么？”
"Because he has ridden high upon the warm winds."
“因为他曾经乘着和风翱翔。”
"I do not understand," said Kamari, frowning.
“我不明白。”卡玛莉蹙眉道。
"Once a bird has touched the sky," I explained, "he can never be content to spend his days on the ground."
“一旦鸟儿尝过了翱翔的滋味，”我解释道，“他就无法甘愿在地面上生活。”
"I will make him content," she said with determination. "You will heal him and I will care for him, and he will live."
“我会让他甘愿的。”她坚定地说。“你把他治好，我来照顾他。他会活下去的。”
"I will heal him and you will care for him," I said. "But," I added, "he will not live."
“我会治好他的，然后你来照顾他。”我说。“但是，”我补充道，“他活不下去的。”
"What is your fee, Koriba?" she asked, suddenly businesslike.
“这怎么收费,柯利巴？”她突然一本正经的问道。
"I do not charge children," I answered. "I will visit your father tomorrow, and he will pay me."
“我不跟孩子谈价钱。”我答道。“我明天会拜访你父亲，由他来付钱。”
She shook her head adamantly. "This is my bird. I will pay the fee."
她固执的摇了摇头。“这是我的鸟。我要自己来。”
"Very well," I said, admiring her spirit, for most children—and all adults—are terrified of their mundumugu, and would never openly contradict or disagree with him. "For one month you will clean my boma every morning and every afternoon. You will lay out my sleeping blankets, and keep my water gourd filled, and you will see that I have kindling for my fire."
“很好。”我说道。她的勇气值得赞赏，大多数的孩子—--和所有成年人----对巫医是心怀敬畏的，他们从不会明目张胆的抗议。“一个月的时间。每天清晨和午后，你来清理我的石堡。你要铺好我的睡毯，使水瓢中时时有水，还要保证有足够的火引子来生火。”
"That is fair," she said after a moment's consideration. Then she added: "What if the bird dies before the month is over?"
“挺公平的。”她想了一下，应道。然后又问：“如果鸟儿在这一个月结束之前死了呢？”
"Then you will learn that a mundumugu knows more than a little Kikuyu girl," I said.
“那你就会明白，巫医知道的比基库尤小女孩多多了。”我说道。
She set her jaw. "He will not die." She paused. "Will you fix his wing now?"
她咬紧了牙根。“他不会死的。”停顿了一下，她续道：“你现在能治好他的翅膀么？”
"Yes."
“可以”
"I will help."
“我来帮忙。”
I shook my head. "You will build a cage in which to confine him, for if he tries to move his wing too soon, he will break it again and then I will surely have to destroy him."
我摇了摇头。“你去弄个能限制他活动的笼子，总挪动翅膀会使伤势复发。这样的话，我就只有结束他的生命了。”
She handed the bird to me. "I will be back soon," she promised, racing off toward her shamba.
她把鸟交给我。“我马上回来。”话音未落，便一溜烟的朝她家农场奔去。
I took the falcon into my hut. He was too weak to struggle very much, and he allowed me to tie his beak shut. Then I began the slow task of splinting his broken wing and binding it against his body to keep it motionless. He shrieked in pain as I manipulated the bones together, but otherwise he simply stared unblinking at me, and within ten minutes the job was finished.
我把幼隼带进屋。他虚弱得几乎无法动弹，任我将他的喙捆住。然后，我开始了这费事儿的任务。先用夹板固定住断翅，再将其和它的身体捆在一起，以免松动。只有在给他接骨的时候，他发出了痛苦的尖叫。其余时间里，他只是目不转睛的望着我。不到十分钟，活儿就干好了。
Kamari returned an hour later, holding a small wooden cage in her hands.
一个小时后，卡玛莉回来了，手里拿着一个木制小笼子。
"Is this large enough, Koriba?" she asked.
“大小可以么，柯利巴”她问道。
I held it up and examined it.
我拿起来看了看。
"It is almost too large," I replied. "He must not be able to move his wing until it has healed."
“这太大了。”我应道。“在伤好前，他是绝对不能挪动翅膀的。”
"He won't," she promised. "I will watch him all day long, every day."
“他不会的。”她承诺道。“我会整天盯着他的，每天都会。”
“You will watch him all day long, every day?" I repeated, amused.
“你会整天盯着他，每天都会？”我揶揄的重复她的话。
"Yes."
“是的。”
"Then who will clean my hut and my boma, and who will fill my gourd with water?"
“那谁来打扫我的屋子我的石堡呢？又有谁来使我的水瓢中时时有水呢？”
"I will carry his cage with me when I come," she replied.
“我可以带着他的笼子一起来。”她回应道。
"The cage will be much heavier when the bird is in it," I pointed out.
“加上他，笼子会沉很多。”我指出来。
"When I am a woman, I will carry far heavier loads on my back, for I shall have to till the fields and gather the firewood for my husband's boma" she said. "This will be good practice." She paused. "Why do you smile at me, Koriba?"
“当我成为女人时，我得背更沉的担子，来为我丈夫的石堡耕田割草。”她说。“这是个锻炼的好机会。”停顿了一下，她问道：“你为什么看着我笑，柯利巴？”
"I am not used to being lectured to by uncircumcised children," I replied with a smile.
“我不太习惯让还没行割礼的孩子来教育我。”我笑着回应。
"I was not lecturing," she answered with dignity. "I was explaining."
“我这不是教育。”她郑重地回答。“我是在解释。”
I held a hand up to shade my eyes from the afternoon sun.
我将手放在额头上遮去午后的阳光。
"Are you not afraid of me, little Kamari?" I asked.
“你不怕我吗，小卡玛莉？”我问道。
"Why should I be?"
“我为什么要怕你？”
"Because I am the mundumugu."
“因为我是巫医。”
"That just means you are smarter than the others," she said with a shrug. She threw a stone at a chicken that was approaching her cage, and it raced away, squawking its annoyance. "Someday I shall be as smart as you are."
“这只能说明你比其他人聪明。”她耸耸肩，说道。她扔了块石头，把想接近笼子的小鸡赶跑。小鸡边跑边发出恼怒的叫声。“有一天，我会和你一样聪明的。”
"Oh?"
“哦？”
She nodded confidently. "Already I can count higher than my father, and I can remember many things."
她自信的点了点头。“我能算得位数已经超过我父亲了，我还能记住很多事情。”
"What kind of things?" I asked, turning slightly as a hot breeze blew a swirl of dust about us.
“什么样的事情？”一阵热风卷起了一股烟尘向我们袭来，我稍微侧了下身子，问道。
"Do you remember the story of the honey bird that you told to the children of the village before the long rains?"
“还记得在那漫长的雨季之前，你给村里的孩子们讲的那个蜂鸟的故事吗？”
I nodded.
我点头。
"I can repeat it," she said.
“我能重复它。”她说道。
"You mean you can remember it."
“你的意思是，你能记住它？”
She shook her head vigorously. "I can repeat every word that you said."
她轻快的摇了摇头。“我能一字不落的重复你所说的。”
I sat down and crossed my legs. "Let me hear," I said, staring off into the distance and idly watching a pair of young men tending their cattle.
我盘膝而坐。“让我听听。”我说着，向远方望去，闲闲地注视着一对正在喂牛的年轻人。
She hunched her shoulders, so that she would appear as bent with age as I myself am, and then, in a voice that sounded like a youthful replica of my own, she began to speak, mimicking my gestures.
她弓起肩膀，学我因岁月而变得佝偻的样子。然后，把声音调整的像年轻的我，模仿着我的姿势，她开始说了。
"There is a little brown honey bird," she began. "He is very much like a sparrow, and as friendly. He will come to your boma and call to you, and as you approach him he will fly up and lead you to a hive, and then wait while you gather grass and set fire to it and smoke out the bees. But you must always"—she emphasized the word, just as I had done—"leave some honey for him, for if you take it all, the next time he will lead you into the jaws of fisi, the hyena, or perhaps into the desert where there is no water and you will die of thirst." Her story finished, she stood upright and smiled at me. "You see?" she said proudly.
“从前，有一只棕色的小蜂鸟。”她起头。“他很像一只麻雀，而且很友善。他会来到你的石堡，呼唤你，当你靠近他时，他会飞起，领你去一个蜂窝，在你捡草放火熏蜜蜂出来的时候，等着你。但你必须总是”—她强调这个词，和我当时所做的一样。“给他留些蜂蜜，若你独吞了全部，下次他就会领你去狒斯之口，鬣狗窝，或许是沙漠，让你渴死在那里。”故事讲完了，她直起身子，微笑的看着我。“看见了？”她自豪的说。
"I see," I said, brushing away a large fly that had lit on my cheek.
“看见了。”我边说着，边驱赶停在我面颊上大苍蝇。
"Did I do it right?" she asked.
“我讲的对不对？”她问道。
"You did it right."
“你讲的很好。”
She stared at me thoughtfully. "Perhaps when you die, I will become the mundumugu."
她沉思地看着我。“或许你死了之后，我会成为巫医。”
"Do I seem that close to death?" I asked.
“我看起来像是快死了吗?”我问道。
"Well," she answered, "you are very old and bent and wrinkled, and you sleep too much. But I will be just as happy if you do not die right away."
“啊。”她答道，“你已经很老了，驼背，满脸皱纹，睡得越来越久。若你还能活些日子，我仍旧会感到愉快的。”
"I shall try to make you just as happy," I said ironically. "Now take your falcon home."
“我会尽力让你依旧愉快的。”我讥讽道。“现在，带着你的幼隼回家。”
I was about to instruct her concerning his needs, but she spoke first.
我正要吩咐她如何照料他时，她先开口了。
"He will not want to eat today. But starting tomorrow, I will give him large insects, and at least one lizard every day. And he must always have water."
“他今天会不想吃东西。不过从明天开始，我会喂他大昆虫，并保证每天一只蜥蜴。而且他不能缺水。”
"You are very observant, Kamari."
“你观察的很仔细，卡玛莉。”
She smiled at me again, and then ran off toward her boma.
她再次朝我微笑，然后向她的石堡跑去。
-----------------------------------------------------------
She was back at dawn the next morning, carrying the cage with her. She placed it in the shade, then filled a small container with water from one of my gourds and set it inside the cage.
她在隔天破晓之时，带着鸟笼返回。她将它放在阴凉处，随后又用一个小罐从我的水瓢中取了些水，放入笼中。
"How is your bird this morning?" I asked, sitting close to my fire, for even though the planetary engineers of the Eutopian Council had given Kirinyaga a climate identical to Kenya's, the sun had not yet warmed the morning air.
“你的鸟怎么样了？”我坐在火炉旁问道，尽管尤托比亚议会的行星工程师们认为光明圣地的气候同肯尼亚相仿，太阳也仍未能使清晨的空气变得温暖。
Kamari frowned. "He has not eaten yet."
卡玛莉蹙眉道。“他还没吃东西。”
"He will, when he gets hungry enough," I said, pulling my blanket more tightly around my shoulders. "He is used to swooping down on his prey from the sky."
“他会吃的，等他饿了的时候。”我边将背在肩上的篮子扯紧，边说道。“他习惯自空中俯冲下来，攫获他的猎物。”
"He drinks his water, though," she noted.
“但是，他喝了那些水。”她表示道。
"That is a good sign."
“那是个好现象。”
"Can you not cast a spell that will heal him all at once?"
“你不能施个一次就能让他痊愈的咒语么？”
"The price would be too high," I said, for I had foreseen her question. "This way is better."
“那要付非常高的价钱。”我说道，我已预见了她的问题。“这样挺好。”
"How high?"
“多高？”
"Too high," I repeated, closing the subject. "Now, do you not have work to do?"
“非常高。”我重复道，以结束这个话题。“现在，你没事可做了吗？”
"Yes, Koriba."
“有的，柯利巴。”
She spent the next few minutes gathering kindling for my fire and filling my gourd from the river. Then she went into my hut to clean it and straighten my sleeping blankets. She emerged a moment later with a book in her hand.
她花了一些时间来为我的火炉收集火引子，自河中为我的水瓢打水。然后，她进去收拾屋子，弄直我的睡毯。过了一会儿，她再次出现时，手里多了本书。
"What is this, Koriba?" she asked.
“这是什么，柯利巴？”她问道。
"Who told you that you could touch your mundumugu's possessions?" I asked sternly.
“谁允许你碰你们巫医的所有物了？”我厉声问道。
"How can I clean them without touching them?" she replied with no show of fear. "What is it?"
“我不碰它们的话，怎么打扫呢？”她毫无惧意的回道。“它是什么？”
"It is a book."
“它是本书。”
"What is a book, Koriba?"
“什么是书，柯利巴？”
"It is not for you to know," I said. "Put it back."
“这不是你应该知道的。”我说道。“把它放回去。”
"Shall I tell you what I think it is?" she asked.
“我能告诉你，我觉得它是什么吗？”她问道。
"Tell me," I said, curious to hear her answer.
“告诉我吧。”我说道，好奇地想听她的答案。
-------------------------------------------
"Do you know how you draw signs on the ground when you cast the bones to bring the rains? I think that a book is a collection of signs."
“你知道当你投掷遗骨来祈雨时，你是怎样在地上画符号的吗？我想那书是本符号集。”
"You are a very bright little girl, Kamari."
“你是个非常聪明的小女孩，卡玛莉。”
"I told you that I was," she said, annoyed that I had not accepted her statement as a self-evident truth. She looked at the book for a moment, then held it up. "What do the signs mean?"
“我告诉过你我是。”她恼怒的说道，觉得我拿她的话当耳旁风。她瞧了一会儿书，然后拿了起来。“这些符号是什么意思？”
"Different things," I said.
“不同的事物。”我说道。
"What things?"
“什么事物？”
"It is not necessary for the Kikuyu to know."
“基库尤人没必要懂这些。”
"But you know."
“但你懂。”
“I am the mundumugu?
“我是巫医。”
"Can anyone else on Kirinyaga read the signs?"
“在光明圣地，还有谁认识这些符号？”
"Your own chief, Koinnage, and two other chiefs can read the signs," I answered, sorry now that she had charmed me into this conversation, for I could foresee its direction.
“你们的首领阔尼纳格，和另外两个首领认识。”我回答道，可悲的是她勾起了我对这场谈话的兴趣，而我早就预见了它要谈论的话题。
"But you are all old men," she said. "You should teach me, so when you all die someone can read the signs."
“但你们都是老头子了。”她说道。“你应该教我，这样一来，你们死后就不愁没人认识这些符号了。”
"These signs are not important," I said. "They were created by the Europeans. The Kikuyu had no need for books before the Europeans came to Kenya; we have no need for them on Kirinyaga, which is our own world. When Koinnage and the other chiefs die, everything will be as it was long ago."
“这些符号并不重要。”我说道。“欧洲人创造了它们。在他们到来之前，基库尤人并不需要读书；我们的世界，光明圣地并不需要它们。当阔尼纳格和其他首领死后，一切将恢复如初。”
"Are they evil signs, then?" she asked.
“那，它们是邪恶的符号吗？”她问道。
"No," I said. "They are not evil. They just have no meaning for the Kikuyu. They are the white man's signs."
“不。”我说道。“它们并不邪恶。只是对基库尤来说没有意义。它们是白人的符号。”
She handed the book to me. "Would you read me one of the signs?"
她把书递给我。“你能读一个符号给我听吗？”
"Why?"
“为什么？”
"I am curious to know what kind of signs the white men made."
“我好奇白人造出的是什么样的符号。”
I stared at her for a long minute, trying to make up my mind. Finally I nodded my assent.
我盯着她有一会儿，试着下定决心。最终，我点头同意了。
"Just this once," I said. "Never again."
“仅此一次。”我说道。“下不为例。”
"Just this once," she agreed.
“仅此一次。”
I thumbed through the book, which was a Swahili translation of Elizabethan poetry, selected one at random, and read it to her:
我翻开这本翻译成斯华西里语的伊丽莎白时代诗集，随便选了一段，读给她听：
Come live with me and be my love,
And we will all the pleasures prove
That valleys, groves, hills, and fields,
Woods, or steepy mountains yields.
你如果和我同住对我爱，
我俩的快乐田地自然来。
林泉有趣田园乐，
巍峨的山岳也脚下踩。
And we will sit upon the rocks,
Seeing the shepherds feed their flocks,
By shallow rivers to whose falls
Melodious birds sing madrigals.
你如果和我同住对我爱，
我俩就在大石头上坐下来。
闲看牧人牧牛羊，
河边百鸟欢唱听天籁。
There will I make thee bed of roses,
And a thousand fragrant posies,
A cap of flowers, and a kirtle
Embroidered all with leaves of myrtle.
你如果和我同住对我爱，
我就用千朵芬芳玫瑰，
为你做出张婚床来，
以你花为冠，用爱神木叶做裙摆。
A bed of straw and ivy buds,
With coral clasps and amber studs:
And if these pleasures may thee move,
Come live with me and be my love.*
我要用芳草和长春藤为你做束带，
用珊瑚做环扣，用琥珀做钩彩。
如果这些快乐能让你动情，
那就做我至爱和我同往来。
*注：马洛的经典作品《激情的牧羊人致心爱的姑娘》（译文是我从别的地方找的。）
Kamari frowned. "I do not understand."
卡玛莉蹙眉道。“我听不懂。”
"I told you that you would not," I said. "Now put the book away and finish cleaning my hut. You must still work in your father's shamba, along with your duties here."
“我早就说过你听不懂。”我说道。“现在把书放回去，接着把屋子打扫完。你不仅要忙这里，还必须给你父亲的农场干活儿。”
She nodded and disappeared into my hut, only to burst forth excitedly a few minutes later.
她点点头，身影隐没进屋中。几分钟后，突然兴奋的叫嚷起来。
"It is a story!" she exclaimed.
“它是个故事。”她呼喊道。
"What is?"
“什么是？”
"The sign you read! I do not understand many of the words, but it is a story about a warrior who asks a maiden to marry him!" She paused. "You would tell it better, Koriba. The sign doesn't even mention fisi, the hyena, and mamba, the crocodile, who dwell by the river and would eat the warrior and his wife. Still, it is a story! I had thought it would be a spell for mundumugus."
“你读的那些符号。虽然很多词我都听不懂，但它是关于一个武士向一名少女求婚的故事。”她顿了一下。“你应该讲清楚点，柯利巴。这些符号根本没提住在河边，会吃掉武士和他妻子的狒斯，鬣狗，树眼镜蛇，鳄鱼。不过，它是个故事！我还以为它是巫医们的咒语了。”
"You are very wise to know that it is a story," I said.
“你很聪明，能知道它是个故事。”我说道。
"Read another to me!" she said enthusiastically.
“给我读个别的！”她热切的说道。
I shook my head. "Do you not remember our agreement? Just that once, and never again."
我摇了摇头。“你忘了我们的约定了么？仅此一次，下不为例。”
She lowered her head in thought, then looked up brightly. "Then teach me to read the signs."
她低下头想了想，然后欢快的抬起头。“那么，教我读这些符号。”
"That is against the law of the Kikuyu," I said. "No woman is permitted to read."
“这是违反基库尤的法律的。”我说道。“没有女人被允许读书。”
"Why?"
“为什么”
---------------------------------------
"It is a woman's duty to till the fields and pound the grain and make the fires and weave the fabrics and bear her husband's children," I answered.
“女人的责任是耕地和打谷和升火和织布和为丈夫生儿育女。”我回答道。
"But I am not a woman," she pointed out. "I am just a little girl."
“但我不是女人。”她指出。“我只是个小女孩。”
"But you will become a woman," I said, "and a woman may not read."
“但你会成为女人。”我说道。“而女人是不可以读书的。”
"Teach me now, and I will forget how when I become a woman."
“现在教我，等我成为女人时，我会忘记的。”
"Does the eagle forget how to fly, or the hyena to kill?"
“鹰会忘记怎样飞翔吗？或者鬣狗会忘记怎样捕猎吗？”
"It is not fair."
“这不公平。”
"No," I said. "But it is just."
“是的。”我说道。“但是公正。”
"I do not understand."
“我不懂。”
"Then I will explain it to you," I said. "Sit down, Kamari."
“那我来说给你听。”我说道。“坐下，卡玛莉。”
She sat down on the dirt opposite me and leaned forward intently.
她在我对面的土堆坐下，身子前倾，专注的听我讲。
"Many years ago," I began, "the Kikuyu lived in the shadow of Kirinyaga, the mountain upon which Ngai dwells."
“多年以前。”我开始讲。“基库尤人住在光明圣地的山阴，那山之上，居住着恩迦。”
"I know," she said. "Then the Europeans came and built their cities."
“我知道。”她说道。“然后欧洲人来了，造了他们的城市。”
"You are interrupting," I said.
“你在打岔。”我说道。
"I am sorry, Koriba," she answered. "But I already know this story."
“对不起，柯利巴。”她应道。“但我已经听过这个故事了。”
"You do not know all of it," I replied. "Before the Europeans came, we lived in harmony with the land. We tended our cattle and plowed our fields, we produced just enough children to replace those who died of old age and disease, and those who died in our wars against the Maasai and the Wakamba and the Nandi. Our lives were simple but fulfilling."
“你知道得并非全部。”我回道。“欧洲人到来之前，我们与大地和谐相处。我们养牛，我们耕地，我们只生育一定数量的幼儿，来更替死于年老和疾病的人，以及死于同马赛、瓦卡姆巴和纳迪战争的人。我们的生活简单，但乐足。”
"And then the Europeans came!" she said.
“然后欧洲人来了！”她说道。
"Then the Europeans came," I agreed, "and they brought new ways with them."
“然后欧洲人来了。”我承认。“他们带来了新的生活方式。”
"Evil ways."
“邪恶的生活方式。”
I shook my head. "They were not evil ways for the Europeans," I replied. "I know, for I have studied in European schools. But they were not good ways for the Kikuyu and the Maasai and the Wakamba and the Embu and the Kisi and all the other tribes. We saw the clothes they wore and the buildings they erected and the machines they used, and we tried to become like Europeans. But we are not Europeans, and their ways are not our ways, and they do not work for us. Our cities became overcrowded and polluted, and our land grew barren, and our animals died, and our water became poisoned, and finally, when the Eutopian Council allowed us to move to the world of Kirinyaga, we left Kenya behind and came here to live according to the old ways, the ways that are good for the Kikuyu." I paused. "Long ago the Kikuyu had no written language, and did not know how to read, and since we are trying to create a Kikuyu world here on Kirinyaga, it is only fitting that our people do not learn to read or write."
我摇摇头。“对欧洲人来说，这并不邪恶。”我回答道。“我知道，因为我曾在欧洲留学。但对基库尤人，马赛人，瓦卡姆巴人，安部人，基西人和其他所有部落来说，却不是好的生活方式。我们瞧见了他们穿的衣服，他们造的高楼，他们用的机器，就想变得和他们一样。但我们不是欧洲人，他们的生活方式不属于我们，他们也不是为我们工作。我们的城市变得拥挤脏乱，我们的土地变得贫瘠，我们的牲畜相继死去，我们的水源受到污染。最终，当尤托比亚议会允许我们迁移到光明圣地的世界时，我们离开肯尼亚来到了这里，按照先前的方式生活，对基库尤人有益的生活方式。”我顿了下。“多年以前基库尤人没有文字，也不知道怎么去读，既然我们是要在光明圣地创造属于基库尤人的世界，不学读书识字，对我们来说才是最妥当的。”
--------------------------------
"But what is good about not knowing how to read?" she asked. "Just because we didn't do it before the Europeans came doesn't make it bad."
“不会读书又有什么好处呢？”她问道。“只不过在欧洲人到来之前我们不读书而已，并不代表读书不好啊。”
"Reading will make you aware of other ways of thinking and living, and then you will be discontented with your life on Kirinyaga."
“读书能使你了解不同的思考方法和生活方式，这样一来，光明圣山的生活就不能满足你了。”
"But you read, and you are not discontented."
“你也读书啊，你也没有不满足啊。”
"I am the mundumugu" I said. "I am wise enough to know that what I read are lies."
“我是巫医。”我说道。“我能分辨出书上的谎言。”
"But lies are not always bad," she persisted. "You tell them all the time."
“但谎言也不见得是坏事。”她坚持道。“你一直在说谎。”
"The mundumugu does not lie to his people," I replied sternly.
“巫医从不对他的人民说谎。”我严厉的回道。
"You call them stories, like the story of the lion and the hare, or the tale of how the rainbow came to be, but they are lies."
“你说它们是故事，就像狮子和野兔的故事，或者关于彩虹来历的传说，但这些都是谎话。”
"They are parables," I said.
“它们是寓言。”我说道。
"What is a parable?"
“什么是寓言？”
"A type of story."
“故事的一种。”
"Is it a true story?"
“它是真事？”
"In a way."
“某种程度上。”
"If it is true in a way, then it is also a lie in a way, is it not?" she replied, and then continued before I could answer her. "And if I can listen to a lie, why can I not read one?"
“如果某种程度上是真事，那也可以说，某种程度上是谎言，不是吗？”她回应道，在我回答之前又继续道。“如果我能听谎话，为什么不能读谎话？”
"I have already explained it to you."
“我已经跟你解释过了。”
"It is not fair," she repeated.
“这不公平。”她重复道。
"No," I agreed. "But it is true, and in the long run it is for the good of the Kikuyu."
“是不公平。”我同意。“但是正确，最终还是为了基库尤人好。”
"I still don't understand why it is good," she complained.
“我还是不懂它好在哪儿。”她抱怨道。
"Because we are all that remain. Once before the Kikuyu tried to become something that they were not, and we became not city-dwelling Kikuyu, or bad Kikuyu, or unhappy Kikuyu, but an entirely new tribe called Kenyans. Those of us who came to Kirinyaga came here to preserve the old ways—and if women start reading, some of them will become discontented, and they will leave, and then one day there will be no Kikuyu left."
“因为我们是残存者。一旦基库尤人想变成与他们不同的某些人，我们不会成为定居在城市的基库尤人，或是不好的基库尤人，或是不快乐的基库尤人，而是成为一个全然不同的部落，它叫肯尼亚人。我们迁移到光明圣地是为了守住我们的传统----如果女人开始读书，她们中的一些就会变得不满足，就会离开，如此一来，基库尤人就完了。”
"But I don't want to leave Kirinyaga!" she protested. "I want to become circumcised, and bear many children for my husband, and till the fields of his shamba, and someday be cared for by my grandchildren."
“但我不想离开光明圣地！”她抗议道。“我想行割礼，想为我的丈夫生很多孩子，想为他的农场耕种，想在老了以后被子孙照顾。”
"That is the way you are supposed to feel."
“你这样想就对了。”
"But I also want to read about other worlds and other times."
“但我也想读其他世界其他时代的事情。”
I shook my head. "No."
我摇了摇头。“不行。”
"But—"
“但----”
"I will hear no more of this today," I said. "The sun grows high in the sky, and you have not yet finished your tasks here, and you must still work in your father's shamba and come back again this afternoon."
“今天到此为止。”我说道。“太阳已经升起来了，你还没干完这里的活儿了，你还得给你父亲的农场干活儿，下午的时候还得回来。”
She arose without another word and went about her duties. When she finished, she picked up the cage and began walking back to her boma.
她一言不发，干活儿去了。做完之后，她抱起鸟笼子，向她的石堡走去。
----------------
I watched her walk away, then returned to my hut and activated my computer to discuss a minor orbital adjustment with Maintenance, for it had been hot and dry for almost a month. They gave their consent, and a few moments later I walked down the long winding path into the center of the village. Lowering myself gently to the ground, I spread my pouchful of bones and charms out before me and invoked Ngai to cool Kirinyaga with a mild rain, which Maintenance had agreed to supply later in the afternoon.
我看着她离开之后，回到屋中，激活了电脑，和维序组织讨论微量调整轨道的事情，因为这里已持续了个把月的干旱。他们同意了，过了会儿，我沿着蜿蜒小径下山，来到了村庄的中心处。我缓缓的沉下身子，盘坐在土地上，将袋中的遗骨和符咒摊撒在面前，祈求恩迦降雨，给光明圣地带来凉爽。当然，降雨的事儿，午后会由维序组织来完成的。
Then the children gathered about me, as they always did when I came down from my boma on the hill and entered the village.
然后，和往常我从山下下来进村的情形一样，孩子们围了上来。
"Jambo, Koriba!" they cried.
“您好，柯利巴！”他们嚷道。
"Jambo, my brave young warriors," I replied, still seated on the ground.
“您好，我的勇士们。”我回应道，仍旧盘坐在土地上。
"Why have you come to the village this morning, Koriba?" asked Ndemi, the boldest of the young boys.
“你早上来村子是为了什么事啊，柯利巴？”恩迪米问道，她是男孩子中胆子最大的。
"I have come here to ask Ngai to water our fields with His tears of compassion," I said, "for we have had no rain this month, and the crops are thirsty."
“我来这儿，是为了祈求恩迦用它慈悲的泪水来滋润大地。”我说道，“已经一个月没下过雨了，庄稼都干了。”
"Now that you have finished speaking to Ngai, will you tell us a story?" asked Ndemi.
“既然你和恩迦说完了，你能给我们讲个故事吗？”恩迪米问道。
I looked up at the sun, estimating the time of day.
我看了看太阳，估算了下现在的时间。
"I have time for just one," I replied. "Then I must walk through the fields and place new charms on the scarecrows that they may continue to protect your crops."
“时间只够讲一个的，”我回应道。“然后我得穿过田地，给稻草人换新的符咒，才能让他们继续保护庄稼。”
"What story will you tell us, Koriba?" asked another of the boys.
“你要给我们讲的是什么故事，柯利巴？”另一个男孩儿问道。
I looked around, and saw that Kamari was standing among the girls.
我观望了一下四周，看见卡玛莉站在女孩儿堆里。
"I think I shall tell you the story of the Leopard and the Shrike," I said.
“我打算给你们讲个关于美洲豹和伯劳鸟的故事。”我说道。
"I have not heard that one before," said Ndemi.
“这个没听过。”恩迪米说。
"Am I such an old man that I have no new stories to tell?" I demanded, and he dropped his gaze to the ground. I waited until I had everyone's attention, and then I began:
“我已经老到没新故事可讲了吗？”我追问道，听了之后，他原本注视着我的目光，迅速沉向了地面。等孩子们的注意力都集中到我这里时，我开始讲了：
"Once there was a very bright young shrike, and because he was very bright, he was always asking questions of his father.
“从前，有一只非常聪明小伯劳鸟。他实在是太聪明了，总有数不尽的问题问他父亲。
" 'Why do we eat insects?' he asked one day.
‘我们为什么要吃昆虫？’一天，他问道。
" 'Because we are shrikes, and that is what shrikes do,' answered his father.
‘因为我们是伯劳鸟，这是伯劳鸟的天性。’他父亲回答道。
" 'But we are also birds,' said the shrike. 'And do not birds such as the eagle eat fish?'
‘但我们也是鸟呀，’小伯劳鸟说道。‘像鹰那样的鸟不就吃鱼吗？’
" 'Ngai did not mean for shrikes to eat fish,' said his father, 'and even if you were strong enough to catch and kill a fish, eating it would make you sick.'
‘伯劳鸟不吃鱼，这是恩迦的旨意。’父亲说道。‘即便你强壮得能捕杀鱼，吃掉它也是件挺恶心的事。’
" 'Have you ever eaten a fish?' asked the young shrike.
‘你吃过鸟儿吗？’小伯劳鸟问道。
" 'No,' said his father.
‘没吃过。’父亲说道。
" 'Then how do you know?' said the young shrike, and that afternoon he flew over the river, and found a tiny fish. He caught it and ate it, and he was sick for a whole week.
‘那你怎么知道？’小伯劳鸟问道。那个下午，他掠过河面，找到了一条很小的鱼，捉住他吃了下去，之后，他整整恶心了一周。
" 'Have you learned your lesson now?' asked the shrike's father, when the young shrike was well again.
‘你得到教训了吗？’他好了之后，小伯劳鸟的父亲问道。
" 'I have learned not to eat fish,' said the shrike. 'But I have another question.'
‘我了解到我们不能吃鱼了。’小伯劳鸟说道。‘但我还有其他问题。’
" 'What is your question?' asked his father.
‘你想问什么？’父亲问道。
" 'Why are shrikes the most cowardly of birds?' asked the shrike. 'Whenever the lion or the leopard appears, we flee to the highest branches of the trees and wait for them to go away.'
‘为什么在所有鸟儿里面，伯劳鸟的胆子最小呢？’小伯劳鸟问道。‘当狮子和美洲豹出现时，我们只能逃到树顶，等他们离开才敢下来’。
" 'Lions and leopards would eat us if they could,' said the shrike's father. 'Therefore, we must flee from them.'
‘狮子和美洲豹会趁机吃了我们。’父亲说道。‘因此，我们必须逃开。’
" 'But they do not eat the ostrich, and the ostrich is a bird,' said the bright young shrike. 'If they attack the ostrich, he kills them with his kick.'
‘但他们不吃鸵鸟啊，鸵鸟也是鸟，’聪明的小伯劳鸟说道。“如果他们袭击鸵鸟，就会被踢死。”
" 'You are not an ostrich,' said his father, tired of listening to him.
‘你是你，不是鸵鸟。’父亲听得有些不耐烦了。
" 'But I am a bird, and the ostrich is a bird, and I will learn to kick as the ostrich kicks,' said the young shrike, and he spent the next week practicing kicking any insects and twigs that were in his way.
‘但我是鸟，鸵鸟也是鸟，我要去学鸵鸟的踢法。’小伯劳鸟说道，接下来的两周里，凡是看得见的昆虫和细枝，都被他用来练习了。
"Then one day he came across chui, the leopard, and as the leopard approached him, the bright young shrike did not fly to the highest branches of the tree, but bravely stood his ground.
后来有一天，他遇到了崔，一只美洲豹。当美洲豹向他靠近时，这只聪明的小伯劳鸟并没有飞向树顶，而是勇敢的站在了原地。
" 'You have great courage to face me thus,' said the leopard. ‘你敢这样对着我，胆子倒是不小。’美洲豹说道。
" 'I am a very bright bird, and I am not afraid of you,' said the shrike. 'I have practiced kicking as the ostrich does, and if you come any closer, I will kick you and you will die.'
‘我是只非常聪明鸟，我才不怕你呢。’小伯劳鸟说道。‘我一直在练习鸵鸟的踢法，你敢再靠近，我就踢死你。’
" 'I am an old leopard, and cannot hunt any longer,' said the leopard. 'I am ready to die. Come kick me, and put me out of my misery.'
‘我老了，已经失去打猎的力气了。’美洲豹说道。‘我已经做好了迎接死亡的准备。过来踢我吧，将我从痛苦中解脱出来。’
"The young shrike walked up to the leopard and kicked him full in the face. The leopard simply laughed, opened his mouth, and swallowed the bright young shrike.
小伯劳鸟走上前去，用全力朝他的脸踢去。美洲豹仅仅是笑着张开嘴，吞下了这只聪明的小伯劳鸟。
" 'What a silly bird,' laughed the leopard, 'to pretend to be something that he was not! If he had flown away like a shrike, I would have gone hungry today—but by trying to be what he was never meant to be, all he did was fill my stomach. I guess he was not a very bright bird after all.' "
‘真是只傻鸟，’美洲豹笑道。‘竟然妄想到如此地步！若是他守本分飞走了，我今天就会饿肚子了----但他的妄想，让他给我填了肚子。真是一点都不聪明。’
> 我来回应
这个小组的骆驼也喜欢去 · · · · · ·
- 外文原文读科幻 (1549)
- 科幻世界 (12503)
- 幻想世界 (757)
- 幻翔 (105)
- 翻译找茬组 (1000)
- 科幻世界®银河漫游2009... (1083)
> 回双峰驼小组
最新话题:
[I] 倒数时刻 (深火)
有人看过纸版的snow crash么？问下…… (Ent)
坑……坑一个，攻壳1.5 (danver)
再贴一篇恰克•帕拉尼克的作品 (红猪)
求助啊求助……business-like gauge是啥玩意 (Ent)
烈火长空 Fire Watch （美）康妮‧威利斯 (Eloa)
特德蒋，前路迢迢（修订版） (bruceyew)
幼童女神--68% (芭芭莲·梨香♡小王子)