十月的一個刮大風的日子，媽媽打電話到學校里告訴我外公死了。和外婆一樣，他也是患中風死的。我這才明白，我和他在池塘釣魚的那天早晨，為何他解釋天鵝之死時顯得那么艱難。

　　the end of my sophomore year was approaching. mom called me at the dorm one muggy evening during the last week of may. my summer break would be spent with grandma and grandpa, helping out around their farm. the arrangement made good sense to all the family. i wasn't fully convinced of that myself but figured it was just one summer. next year would be my little brother's turn。

　　大學二年級就快結束了。五月最后一個星期一個悶熱的晚上，母親打電話到我宿舍來，想讓我去外公外婆那兒度暑假，幫他們做做農場的活。她說這樣安排對全家都有好處。雖然我并不這樣認為，但想想不過是一個夏天而已。 明年就該輪上我弟弟去了。

　　i packed my car after my last exam and said my good-byes until the fall. my friends would keep until then. most of them were going home for the summer any-way。

　　最后一場考試考完我將打好的行裝放進車里，跟大家告別時說秋天見。我的朋友們到那時才能見到，他們多數人也要回家過暑假。

　　the farm was about a three-hour drive from school. my grandparents were both in their 70s, and i knew they really needed the help around the farm. getting in the hay would be something grandpa couldn't do by himself. he also needed help with repairs to the barns and a host of other chores。

　　從學校到農場開車去約三個小時。 我的外公外婆都七十多歲了。我知道他們農場確實也需要個幫手。 把干草收進來外公一個人是干不了的。他也需要人幫他修理谷倉以及干其他許多經常要干的雜活。

　　i arrived late that afternoon. grandma had fixed more food than the three of us could possibly eat. she doted over me entirely too much. i figured all the attention would taper off once she got used to having me around, but it didn't. grandpa wanted to bring me up to date on literally everything. by the time i settled in for bed that night, i'd decided things would be okay. after all, it was just for one summer。

　　那天下午我到得晚，外婆做了許多吃的，我們三人根本就吃不完。外婆疼我疼得過分了。我想等我呆久了，她習慣了，就不會這樣操心了，可情況并非如此。外公想讓我了解一切，什么都不漏地和我講。晚上到了睡覺的時候，我告訴自己一切都會很順利，不會有什么問題。畢竟，只是一個夏天而已。

　　the next morning, grandpa fixed breakfast for the two of us. he told me grandma had tired herself out yesterday and was going to rest in bed a little longer. i made a mental note to myself to not ask her to do things for me while i was there. i was there to help, not be a burden。

　　第二天早晨，外公為我們倆準備了早餐。 他對我說外婆昨天累著了，今天要多睡一會兒。 我心里記住在這兒的日子里千萬不要她再為我操勞了。我是來幫忙的，不是為他們增加負擔的。

　　grandpa surprised me that morning. once we were out of the house, he seemed more in his own element. the farm was his domain. despite his age, there was confidence in the way he moved about the place. he didn't seem like the same person who had fallen asleep last night on the couch before the six o'clock news was finished. as we walked the pastures getting a close-up look at the livestock, grandpa seemed to know each cow. and there were nearly 200 of them!

　　那天上午，外公讓我吃了一驚。我們一離開家，他看上去就頗為得意。農場就是他的領地。盡管年紀大了，他走到哪兒都信心十足的樣子. 他好像完全換了一個人，不像昨晚那樣，六點鐘的新聞還沒有播完他就在躺椅上睡著了。我們走過牧場去查看放牧的牲畜，外公似乎認得每一頭母牛。牧場的牲口差不多有二百頭呢！