于歌

My morning routine varies little from day to day. I walk the dog， eat breakfast at the kitchen counter with Katie and Matt， then settle in for a day at the computer. And because I work mostly from home， I have learned that little forays into the outside world are imperative for psychological well-being. So before I begin attempting to put sentences together， I stroll over to a quirky little coffee shop in my neighborhood， chat with the folks behind the counter， and get a large coffee to go. No sugar. No cream. 

每天早上，我都要做这样几件事：遛一阵小狗，坐在厨房餐桌前陪妻子卡蒂和儿子马特吃早餐，然后对着电脑，一头扎进写作天地中。天天如是，无甚变化。由于主要在家里工作，我很明白时不时到外边的世界“闯荡”一下对自己保持良好的心态有多么重要。因此，在推敲词句着笔成文之前，我会散步去附近一间风格奇特的小咖啡店，和店里的伙计们聊聊天，然后带回一大杯咖啡——不加糖、不加奶的那一种。 

The coffee shop is on the other side of the historic Chesapeake & Ohio Canal from my house. In season， a mule-drawn barge is docked there， and tourists line up to take a slow boat， if not to [en]China， at least into the 19th century. The men who work the boat wear what canal workers might have worn back then-broad-brimmed straw hats and suspenders that pull their scratchy-looking pants high above their boots. 

离我家不远的地方就是历史悠久的切萨皮克—俄亥俄运河，那间小咖啡店就座落在运河对岸。每逢旺季，便有一条用骡子拖拽的驳船停靠在河边，游客们会排起长队等着乘坐一艘慢悠悠的小船，即使不像驶往古老的中国，至少也像是要驶回19世纪的昔日时光。船上的工人穿着只有当年运河船工们才有的行头：宽边草帽和吊带裤。那吊带把他们那看起来粗糙的裤子高高吊起，露出他们的靴子。 

One warm day last fall， I was on my morning outing when I turned the corner to see one of the men sitting alone on the boat， bathed in early-morning light. He was playing a tiny accordion， the kind such canal men squeezed as they floated down the inland waterways of a westward-expanding America. The sound was both melancholy and sweet. It was as if he were alone in the universe. The scene stopped me in my tracks. What I witnessed could only be described as a perfect moment. Ten seconds at most. But months later I still remember just standing there， watching， listening， taking it all in. 

去年秋天里的一天，風和日丽，我还和平常一样一早外出溜达。刚转过街口，我一眼就看见那条船。船上没有别人，只有一个船工静静地坐着，沐浴着晨曦。他正在船上拉着小手风琴。当年的运河船工正是这样，抚琴驾舟，沿着这条古老的内陆河道向美国西部航行。琴声忧郁而甜美，仿佛整个宇宙只有他一人。此情此景，令我情不自禁停了下来。我所看到的这个情景只能用“完美时刻”来描述！不过十秒的时光。可数月后，我仍清楚地记得当时自己就站在那里，注视着，倾听着，把一切都刻印在脑海中。……