Prayer for My Mother

　　為我的母親祈禱

　　Dear God,

　　親愛(ài)的上帝：

　　Now that I am no longer young, I have friends whose mothers have passed away. I have heard these sons and daughters say they never fully appreciated their mothers until it was too late to tell them.

　　如今我已不再年輕，一些朋友的母親已經(jīng)去世了。我曾聽(tīng)這些子女們說(shuō)過(guò)，他們從沒(méi)有向母親充分表示過(guò)他們的感激之情，而待到要告訴時(shí)為時(shí)已晚了。

　　I am blessed with the dear mother who is still alive. I appreciate her more each day. My mother does not change, but I do. As I grow older and wiser, I realize what an extraordinary person she is. How sad that I am unable to speak these words in her presence, but they flow easily from my pen.

　　幸運(yùn)的是，我親愛(ài)的母親依然健在。我對(duì)她的感情與日俱增。母親沒(méi)有變，而我卻變了。隨著年歲的增長(zhǎng)，我越來(lái)越懂事了，我認(rèn)識(shí)到她是個(gè)非常了不起的人。這些話在她面前我難以啟齒，但在筆下卻可以輕易地寫出來(lái)，這令我感到多么難過(guò)。

　　How does a daughter begin to thank her mother for life itself? For the love, patience and just plain hard work that go into raising a child? For running after a toddler, for understanding a moody teenager, for tolerating a college student who knows everything? For waiting for the day when a daughter realizes her mother really is?

　　一個(gè)女兒該怎樣開(kāi)口感謝她的母親所給予的生命？感謝她在撫養(yǎng)孩子時(shí)所付出的愛(ài)、耐心以及無(wú)私的辛勤勞動(dòng)？感謝她跟在蹣跚學(xué)步的孩子身后奔跑，對(duì)情緒不定的少女的理解，以及對(duì)一個(gè)自以為是的大學(xué)生的寬容? 感謝她等待女兒認(rèn)識(shí)到她真是一位好母親的這一天？

　　How does a grown woman thank for a mother for continuing to be a mother? For being ready with advice (when asked) or remaining silent when it is most appreciated? For not saying: “I told you so”, when she could have uttered these words dozens of times? For being essentially herself--loving, thoughtful, patient, and forgiving?

　　一個(gè)成年女子該怎樣感謝母親依然如故的角色？感謝在被問(wèn)到時(shí)她會(huì)及時(shí)提供良言，而在不需要時(shí)她會(huì)保持沉默？感謝她沒(méi)有說(shuō)：“我告訴過(guò)你，”而她本來(lái)可以說(shuō)上許多次？感謝她始終不變的愛(ài)心、體貼周到、耐心與寬容厚道?

　　I don’t know how, dear God, except to bless her as richly as she deserves and to help me live up to the example she has set. I pray that I will look as good in the eyes of my children as my mother looks in mine.

　　我不知道該怎樣來(lái)表達(dá)，親愛(ài)的上帝，除了請(qǐng)求你好好地保佑她－－那是她該得到的－－并幫助我朝她做出的榜樣看齊。我祈愿在孩子的眼里我會(huì)如同母親在我眼里一般好。

　　A daughter

　　一個(gè)女兒