陈志强（译）

The summer I turned 16,my father gave me his refurbished 69-Chevy Malibu convertible（敞篷车）.Cherry red,V-8 engine—a gift wasted on me at that age.What did I know about classic cars?The im-portant thing was that Hannah and I could drive around Tucson with the top down.

Hannah was my best friend,a year younger but much taller,almost five foot ten.That summer she signed with a modeling agency.She had already been doing runway work.

A month after my birthday,Hannah and I went to the movies.On the way home,we stopped at the Mc-Donald's drive-through,putting the fries on the seat between us to share. “Let’s ride around a while”,I said.It was a clear night，a full moon hanging low over the desert.Taking a curve too fast,I drove it into a fullgrown palm.The front wheels came to rest halfway up the tree trunk.

我16岁那年夏天，父亲给了我他翻新的69-雪佛兰马利布敞篷车。樱桃红，V-8引擎，在那个年纪我浪费了一份礼物。我对经典汽车了解多少呢？最重要的是我和汉娜可以自下而上地绕着图森转转。

汉娜是我最好的朋友，比我小一岁，但高得多，差不多五英尺十英寸。那年夏天她和一家模特公司签了约。她已经在做走台的工作了。

Frightening blood was running down on Hannah’s face！Flaps of skin was hanging into her eyes.They took us in separate ambulances.In the ER,my parents spoke quietly:“Best plastic surgeon in the city.End of her modeling career.”

When her mother,Sharon,came into my hospital room,I started to cry,preparing myself for her anger.

She sat beside me and took my hand.“I rearended（追尾）my best friend when I was your age,”she said,“I totaled her car and mine.”

“I’m so sorry，” I said.

“You’re both alive, ” she said,“That is enough to my relief.”I started to protest,but Sharon stopped me.“I forgive you.Hannah will too.”

Sharon’s forgiveness allowed Hannah and me to get back in the car together that summer,to stay friends throughout high school and college,and to be in each other’s weddings，and to watch our children play with each other happily.I think of her gift of forgiveness every time I’m tempted to resent（怨恨）someone for a perceived（觉察）wrong.And whenever I see Hannah.The scars are so faded no one else would notice,but in the sunlight I can still see the faint shimmer（微光）just below her hairline—for me,an imprint(印记）of grace.

我生日一个月后，汉娜和我去看电影。在回家的路上，我们停在麦当劳的过道处，把薯条放在我们之间的座位上一起分享。“我们溜达一会儿吧！”我说。那是一个晴朗的夜晚，一轮满月低低地垂落在沙漠上。驱车疾驰，我的车钻进了一棵成熟的棕榈。车子的前轮停在树干的一半处。

狰狞的血从汉娜的脸上流下来了！她的眼睛里挂着一片皮肤。他们用不同的救护车把我们带走了。在急诊室，我的父母悄悄地说：“已经找了城里最好的整形外科医生，但她的模特生涯结束了。”

当她的母亲莎伦走进我的病房时，我开始哭起来，以便为她的愤怒做好准备。

她坐在我旁边，握住我的手。“我在你这么大的时候，我和我朋友的车追尾了。”她说，“我把她的车和我的车都毁了。”

“我很抱歉。”我说。

“你们两个都还活着，”她说，“这足以让我松一口气。”我试图反对，但莎伦阻止了我。“我原谅你了，汉娜也会的。”

莎伦的原谅让汉娜和我那年夏天一起回到车里，在高中和大学期间依然是朋友，参加了彼此的婚礼，并看着我们的孩子们快乐地一起玩耍。每当我想要怨恨一个犯了明显错误的人时，我都会想起她的宽恕礼物。每当我看到汉娜。这些伤疤已经褪色了，没人会注意到，但是在阳光下，我仍然能看到她头发下面的微弱光泽——对我来说，那是优雅的印记。

Critical writing

What should we learn from Sharon and her daughter Hannah？What should we do if someone does a wrong to us？