怎么了? – Mr Bennett? – Yes?
你知道那是什么吗?
不知道 – Do you know what that is? – No.
是最后的开怀一笑
It’s the last laugh.
她想升♥天♥
Well, she wanted an ascension.
让我们完成她的祈愿吧
Let’s answer her prayers.
准备好,玛丽·特蕾沙·谢帕德女士
Stand by, Miss Mary Teresa Shepherd,
最后安息地格洛斯特新月街23号♥
late of 23 Gloucester Crescent.
升♥天♥吧
Up you go.
起初她偶然出现在我的生命中
Starting out as someone incidental to my life,
停留了这么久之后,终于成为必然
she remained on the edge of it so long, she became not incidental to it at all.
归乡的儿女将照顾父母
As homebound sons and daughters looking after their parents
看作是自己人生开始前的原地停顿
think of it as just marking time before their lives start,
像他们一样,我认识到岁月不等人
so, like them, I learned there is no such thing as marking time
岁月会留下烙印
and that time marks you.
在接纳她,适应她的时光里
In accommodating her and accommodating to her,
我人生的20年已经过去了
I find 20 years of my life has gone.
英国交响乐团
国王厅 钢琴独奏 玛格丽特·费尔柴尔德
这个年老衰弱的女人,她的那些妄想
This broken-down old woman, her delusions,
她那逐渐流逝的生命以及住货车的岁月
and the slow abridgment of her life, with all its vehicular permutations,
等待着我去记录
these have been given to me to record
就像其他人记录穿越阿富汗或巴塔哥尼亚的旅行
as others record journeys across Afghanistan or Patagonia
住货车的女士
阿兰·巴尼特
抑或和女人们的风流韵事
or the thighs of a dozen women.
你要我去做的事
You wanted me to make things happen.
我没做过多少,但没关系
And I never have much, but it doesn’t matter.
因为我学到了很多
Because what I’ve learnt,
也许是她教给我的,别把自己写到故事中去
and maybe she taught me, is that you don’t put yourself into what you write.
而是在故事中发现自己
You find yourself there.
我从没想过要写她的故事
I never wanted to write about her.
如果你的生活再精彩些,我就不必写这些了
If there’d been a bit more in your life, I wouldn’t have had to.
或许现在我会了呢
Maybe I will now.
什么?
What?
让生活丰富起来
Have a bit more in my life.
我甚至可能要开始生活了
I might even start living.
今天过得好吗?
Good day?
Not bad. You?
还不错,你呢?
这些刚到
These came.
很好
Very good.
下来吗?
好的 – Coming down? – All right.
这就是故事的结局
That’s the end of the story.
也许可以写成一部戏剧
It might make a play.
你觉得呢?
What do you think?
我来了,你不用再自言自语了
Now I’m here, I think you should stop talking to yourself.

Hi.
嗨,阿兰
Hi, Alan.
好,安静点,开始,转过来
Okay, nice and quiet, please. Here we go. And let’s turn over.
B
记下来 – B. – Mark it.
好,第14条
Okay, take 14.
开始!
And, action!
格洛斯特新月街住过很多知名人士
Gloucester Crescent has had many notable residents,
但没有谁比谢帕德女士更奇怪,更非凡
but none odder or more remarkable than Miss Mary Shepherd,
今天我们将这块蓝牌献给她
to whom we dedicate this blue plaque today.
玛丽·特蕾莎·谢帕德女士
住货车的女士 曾居于此 1974—1989

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