By Liu Yurong

Back when I was just a poor, struggling student in Los Angeles, I couldn’t afford a car at all.Fortunately for me, one of my classmates introduced me to Matsuno—the man with the keys to a car…and my heart.

Reticent but Attentive

He really felt for me. Come rain or shine, he was there for me driving me around four times a day so that I could read and work without any unnecessary burdens. It was like me having an own private chauffeur.

Unfortunately, it didn’t last long. Within three months, I got terribly ill. The doctor diagnosed me with mild pneumonia. I lay in bed in a daze with a high fever and couldn’t get out of bed for at least two weeks. Matsuno was right there taking care of me,serving me soup and medicine and making food for me. My parents and children were not around, I was alone, poor and sick, and desperate. Had I not met this quiet, diligent and meticulous Japanese American who worked tirelessly without complaint, I might have died in a foreign land.

Matsuno’s parents were born in the United States,so he is a third generation Japanese-American,and the eldest of five siblings. Due to his natural shyness, he had not really been in love till in his late thirties. With his Doctor of Pharmacy degree from the University of Southern California (USC), he has especially high income. Lying on the sickbed, I looked at his massive back when a thought crossed my mind—maybe he’s the man for me? Soon after I got well, we quietly registered for marriage at the local town chapel, and I have been Mrs. Matsuno for more than 20 years.

憨厚洋丈夫

文/刘於蓉

在洛杉矶，当年只是一个穷学生的我根本无力养一部车子，幸好同学介绍我认识了他——松野。

寡言却细致

他对我的处境十分同情，工作之余，一天四次开车接送我，风雨无阻，让我能像雇用了私人专职司机一样，安心地读书和工作。

可惜好景不长，不到三个月，我就累病了，又得了风寒，医生诊断我感染了轻度肺炎。我躺在床上，高烧不退，至少有两个星期迷迷糊糊地起不了床。松野衣不解带地照顾我，伺候我喝汤药，喂我吃饭。父母、孩子都不在身边，我形单影只，贫病无依，若不是上苍让我遇见这个沉默寡言、任劳任怨、无微不至的日裔美国人，可能我会客死异乡。

松野的父母都出生在美国，他是第三代日裔美国人，五个兄弟姐妹中他排行老大，因为天性羞涩，三十七八岁还没真正谈过恋爱。他学有专长，是南加州大学（USC）毕业的药剂学博士，有一份很好的收入。躺在病床上养病时，我望着他厚实的背影想了又想，觉得嫁给他不算太委屈。病愈不久，我们悄悄地到镇上的小教堂注册成婚，就这样，我做了二十多年的松野太太。

婚后，两人日夜生活在一起，唇齿相依，互相适应外，也免不了发生摩擦。开头的十年，我常怀疑自己的选择。他是标准的坐如钟、立如松，不但动作慢，反应迟缓，而且坚信“沉默是金”，可以一整天不说一句话，造成我精神上的极大苦闷。我怀疑，这个土生土长的美国人，骨子里是不是仍然潜伏着日本式大男子主义的毒素？……