In the middle of a beautiful day, I was feeling lost, as if the world was crashing in on me. I didn't know which way to go, except to head out to the countryside. On days like this I love to find a place where silence rule where the wind in the tall pine trees sounds like ocean waves crashing along some deserted beach I've walked along in my memory.
在一个美好的日子里，我感觉非常迷茫，好像整个世界在向我压来。除去去乡间，我不了解自己该去什么地方。在这种时候，我一直喜欢找一个宁静的地方，在那里，风从高高耸立的松树间穿过，听起来就像是海浪拍打着我记忆中曾漫步过的某个荒芜的沙滩。
At first I headed to the city park. Not very countryside-like, but close enough to begin my journey inward. I went to the spot where I used to take my kids-when I still had kids. That might give you an idea of what my wretched day was all about: My kids grew up and I didn't.
我第一去了城市公园。那里虽然并没太多的乡间气息，可那里非常近，我可以非常快就开始我的心灵之旅。我来到以前我常常带小孩玩耍的地方——那时我还有小孩。目前你可能已经了解我为何情绪低落了——我的小孩都长大了，而我却没变。
After getting my fill of moms and dads running, laughing, and swinging their time away together with their kids, I headed out to a nearby state park. Here ducks and crane rabbits and deer, all clamor for your attention, and replace the pain of the day with awe and wonder. Here, with the prolonging of winter and the yearning for spring, life, as we humans know it, stands still. Here birds fly whenever they want, wherever they want. The snow, remnant of colder days, still clings on to the ground. The ground is soft and soggy, giving hope to the grass that eagerly waits beneath, that very soon it will rise awake from its slumber, and will carpet once again the hills and pathways of the park, for residents and visitors alike.
在城市公园，爸爸妈妈与他们的孩子奔跑、欢笑、一块度过他们的快乐时光的画面充斥我的脑海。接着，我来到附近的一个州立公园。在这里，鸭子、鹤、兔子，还有鹿吵吵闹闹，吸引了你的注意，叫你在敬畏和惊奇中忘记了一天的烦恼。在这里，寒冬迟迟未走，春季久候不至，大家了解，这时生命是沉寂的。在这里，鸟儿们随性地自由飞翔。寒冬留下的残雪依然紧紧地贴着地面。地面柔软而潮湿，给正在地下焦急等待的小草带来了期望——非常快它们就要从沉睡中醒来，然后第三铺满山丘，铺满公园里居民和游客行走的小路。
I sat alone in my car, listening to songs that brought back memories…Memories of the days when I was "Daddy", and of challenging dares to "Walk across the creek on this log like me, Dad!"
我一个人坐在车里，听着那些叫人陷入回忆的歌曲。回忆里有我让人叫做“父亲”的日子，还有来自小孩们的挑战：“父亲，像我刚刚那样从这根木头上过河。”
It was nearly spring, and the child in us all heads for the attic to dust off the old kite, which would take us higher every year. On one end of its string glorious colors float like rainbows; on the other end-grown-up kids swear that they "just want to get it flying!" "You can take over in a minute, sweetheart."
春季马上就到了，大家内心深处的童真促进大家冲进阁楼，抖落旧风筝上的灰尘。那些风筝会让大家每年都飞得更高。在风筝线的这头，五颜六色的线好似天边的彩虹；线的另一头是已经长大的孩子，他们信誓旦旦地说着：“只不过想让它飞起来！” “宝贝，你立刻就能接过去自己放风筝了。”
There I sat-with all my troubles and woes, much too sensitive to life to begin with-discovering how life goes on for everyone else, even as mine seemed to sTOP for a while.
内心充满烦恼和忧伤的我，本来就对马上开始的新生活过于敏锐。我坐在那里，发现即便我的生活好像暂时停了下来，但别的人的生活依旧在继续。
Just then I saw a man, whose problems appeared bigger than mine. He looked to be in his seventies and, although careful with his steps, quite spry for his age. He stood near the edge of the road, holding a kite spindle in his hands.
就在这个时候，我看到了一个好像比我更烦恼的男性。他看起来七十多岁的样子，虽然他走路非常小心，但他的节奏对他这个年龄的人来讲还算非常敏捷。他站在路边，手里拿着一个风筝线锭。
Seemingly lost in thought, he stared skyward. I stretched my neck to see how successful he had been in reaching the clouds. Following his string with my eye, I almost lost sight of the other end. Could he possibly have sailed his wind-driven dream chariot to the very edge where the blue skies met the blackness of the earth?
他仰起头往天上看，好像陷入了沉思。我伸长了脖子，想看看他能否成功地让风筝飞入云端。我的目光紧跟着他手中的风筝线往上看，几乎看不到另一头。难道他真的成功地让那辆承载着梦想的战车乘风去到了蓝天与黑土相交的边际？
No, not quite. His string ended just beyond a tall tree, floating across two others, nestling the kite aTOP of what seemed to be the highest branch of the tallest tree in the park. I drew nearer and, without speaking a word, stood beside the man, gazing in astonishment at this accomplishment.
不对，没。他手中的线牵引着风筝飞过了一棵高耸的树，又飞过另外两棵树，然后在一棵看着是公园里最高的树的最高枝丫上停了下来。我走了过去，一言不发，站在那个男性旁边，惊奇地看着他的“收获”。
There for all the world to see, was his grandson’s kite! The kite was a replica of a beautiful Bald Eagle, its wings spread wide open. As the wind rushed through the treeTOP making the plastic wings flutter and flap, it looked so real…
显然，那是他孙子的风筝。那只风筝的造型是一只漂亮的白头鹫，舒展着宽大的双翼。风吹过树梢时，那只白头鹫的一双塑料翅膀会拍打着翩然起飞，看着那样逼真……
Alas, Grandpa had only one solution for his problem, and it was to cut the string. His grandson seemed to believe that Grandpa could solve any problem; perhaps even climb up and get it.
唉，爷爷只有一个办法来解决这个问题，那就是把风筝的线剪断。他的孙子好像相信爷爷无所不可以，或许他还能爬到树上，把风筝拿下来。
"You wanted it to fly as high as it could, Billy. Didn't you?" "Yes, Grandpa, but I wanted to keep it forever." "There just comes a time when the only thing you can do is to cut the string and let it go. Perhaps by doing that, when it soars like real eagles do, it will come back to us." Grandpa said.
“你是想让它飞得越高越好的，比利，对不对？” “是的，爷爷。不过，我还想永远留着它。” “有时，你唯一能做的就是把线剪断，让它自己飞。或许如此做了将来，有一天，当它像真的的鹰那样自由翱翔时，它还会回到大家身边。”爷爷说道。
I watched how the old man cut the string, releasing the kite, as Billy’s dream-on-wings snapped back, settling gently into its new position high aTOP the barren tree.
我看着老人剪断手中的风筝线，松开风筝。比利那“飞翔的梦想”第三飞了起来，轻轻地落在一棵光秃的树的梢头，那是它的新地方。
As the two walked away, I looked to the sky. There I saw my answer, too. Tears began to run down my cheek, and with a big sigh I prayed...
爷孙两个走远了。我仰望天空，在那里我也找到了我的答案。泪水开始滑过我的脸颊，我深深地叹了一口气，开始祈祷……
"Today I have to cut the final strings that kept my two boys within my reach. I have taught them to fly like eagle though I wanted to keep them forever. Maybe by doing this, when it’s their time to soar like real eagles do, one day they would come back to me."
“今天，我要剪断我一直把两个儿子留在身边的最后一条线。尽管我想让他们永远留在我身边，但我已经教会他们像鹰一样飞翔。或许我把线剪断，让他们像真的的鹰一样自由飞翔时，有一天他们会回到我身边。”
Life's best lessons are learned by living.
生活最好的启示源于生活。
Keith, Evan, you are Eagles now! Fly!
基思、埃文，你们目前都是鹰了。展翅高飞吧！
