双语·有声 | 幸福是“煮”出来的我的幸福

幸福是“煮”出来的

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It"s New Year"s Eve and my dad"s entire family and his friends have come to visit. The house fills with chatter of an unknown language. I feel

alienated1)

when surrounded by these people who are my own blood. I"m different.

这是新年前夜，爸爸那边的亲朋好友全都来家里做客了。屋子里充斥着叽叽喳喳我听不懂的语言。身处这些和我血脉相连的至亲当中，我却觉得自己格格不入。我和他们不一样。

My father"s friends ask me questions, but I don"t understand a word. Most of them speak English but choose not to. All I can offer is a smile to fill the awkwardness. I overhear my father say a word. I"ve heard that so many times that I understand it: she doesn"t speak Punjabi. "Ahh!" his friends reply, as if it"s some sort of disgrace to be half Indian and not speak their language.

爸爸的朋友们问了我一些问题，但我一个字也听不懂。他们当中的大部分人都会说英语，但却选择不说。我所能做的就是微微一笑来化解尴尬。我无意中听到爸爸说了一句话。这句话我听过太多次了所以能听懂，意思是：她不会说旁遮普语。“啊！”他的朋友们回答，似乎有一半印度血统却不会说他们的语言多少有些丢人。

To me, their language sounds like

gibberish2)

. Most of the time I feel

paranoid3)

, wondering if they"re talking about me. I see friends and family look at me for a second then turn away, continuing their conversations. That"s the look I hate the most.

对我来说，他们的语言听起来就像是胡言乱语。绝大部分时间我觉得自己疑神疑鬼的，揣测他们是不是在谈论我。我看见那些朋和家人看了我一眼，然后转过脸去接着聊天。我最讨厌他们这样看我。

1. alienated [?e?li?ne?t?d] adj. 疏远的；分离的

2. gibberish [?d??b?r??] n. 无意义或令人费解的话

3. paranoid [?p?r?n??d] adj. 有妄想狂倾向的；多疑的

Then again, I think about my mother. Unlike me, she has no Indian blood. I wonder how she feels. Most of my dad"s family judged my mother because she is Mexican. They believed that she didn"t have the skills that an Indian wife should, such as the ability to cook Indian food. My mom was determined to prove them wrong.

于是，我又想起了妈妈。和我不一样，她没有印度血统。我不知道她感觉如何。以前爸爸的大部分家人都曾对妈妈评头论足，因为她是墨西哥人。他们当时并不相信她具备一个印度妻子应有的技能，比如烧印度菜的能力。那时妈妈下定决心要证明他们看走眼了。

The smell of spices and

curry4)

fills the air. Some spices are so strong that they burn my throat as I

inhale5)

them. I follow the trail into the kitchen and see my mother preparing food. I help her set the table. There are large bowls of

lentils6)

, vegetables, and curry, each with its own color and texture. I bring out the dal—lentils boiled with spices and vegetables. They look like small beans ?oating among the vegetable and spices. I can see green chilies, onions,

cilantro7)

, tomato, all very small but mixing together to create a rainbow.

此刻空气中弥漫着各种香料和咖喱的味道。有些香料的味道很冲，以至于我吸进去后觉得嗓子火辣辣的。我顺着那股气味走进了厨房，看见妈妈正在做饭。我帮她把餐具摆好。厨房里有几个大碗，里面分别盛着扁豆、蔬菜和咖喱，每一碗都有各自的颜色和口感。我端出一碗用各种香料和蔬菜一起煮出来的扁豆浓汤。它们看上去像一颗颗小豆子漂浮在蔬菜和各种香料中间。我可以看见绿辣椒、洋葱、香菜、西红柿，它们都切得很碎，但混合在一起形成了一道彩虹。

The next bowl I bring out is sabji. The curry drowns out the cooked peas and carrots, giving them a new color. The small cheese cubes are added last. They are easy to see, since they remain white.

我紧接着端出来的是一碗辣味炒拌菜。咖喱浇盖在炖熟了的豌豆和胡萝卜上，给了它们一种新的色彩。那些小方块的干酪是最后才放进去的，很容易就能看见，因为它们依然是白色的。

I set a dish of sahg on the table. At ?rst glance, it looks like the most disgusting food ever—

spinach8)

and mustard leaves9) boiled for hours until it looks like a dark green

paste10)

. Despite this, it"s delicious and especially made for winter. The spices and chili drown the bitter spinach taste.

我把一盘菠菜糊摆上了桌。乍一看，它就像是世界上最恶心的食物——将菠菜和芥菜放在一块儿煮好几个小时，直到看上去像深色的糊状物。这道菜虽然卖相不怎么样，但却很美味，尤其适合冬天享用。香料和辣椒会盖住菠菜的苦味。

Finally, my mom walks into the dining room with the most special dish of all, aloo gobi. She sets it right in the middle, as if it is royalty compared to all the others. I look into the large bowl and see

cauliflower11)

crowns blooming with steaming potatoes, spices perfectly scattered over the vegetables, making them glow bright yellow, catching my eye and luring me in.

最后，妈妈端着所有菜当中最特别的一道菜——香辣土豆花椰菜——走进饭厅。她把这道菜摆在桌子正中间，仿佛和其他所有菜相比它是皇室贵族一般。我朝这个大碗里看了一眼，看见花椰菜的冠绽放在热气腾腾的土豆中，各种香料均匀地撒在蔬菜上，使它们散发出亮黄色的光芒，抓住了我的眼球，吊起了我的胃口。

Everyone serves themselves. I choose the aloo gobi ?rst. We sit around the table in the illuminated dining room. My dad is laughing with his family and friends, enjoying this time. My mother and I remain quiet and eat in peace.

每个人都自己盛饭盛菜。我一上来就选了香辣土豆花椰菜。在灯火通明的饭厅里，我们围坐在餐桌旁。爸爸和他的亲友们一起开怀大笑，享受着这个时光。妈妈和我则保持沉默，安静地吃饭。

4. curry [?k?ri] n. 咖喱

5. inhale [?n?he?l] vt. 吸入

6. lentil [?lentl] n. 扁豆

7. cilantro [s??l?ntr??] n. 芫荽叶(用作调味香料或饰菜)，香菜

8. spinach [?sp?n?t?] n. 菠菜

9. mustard leaf: 芥菜

10. paste [pe?st] n. 糊状物

11. cauli?ower [?k?lifla??(r)] n. 花椰菜(通称菜花)

Then all of a sudden, I hear something that is music to my ears. "This is the best I have ever tasted!" I look up and see my aunt with a huge smile on her face. Everyone exclaims in agreement. The alien language I had been hearing all day is gone. English fills the room. Everyone is complimenting my mother. I can hear shock and amazement in their voices. My mother, having no experience with the Indian culture, can make much more than a

decent12)

Indian meal. As everyone fills their stomachs, the chattering fades, leaving a silent satisfaction in the room.

突然，我听见了一句悦耳的话：“这是我吃过的最好吃的菜！”我抬起头，看见姑姑脸上挂着灿烂的微笑。每个人都大声附和。我听了一整天的外星语消失了，房间里都是英语。每个人都在称赞妈妈。我能从他们的声音里听出震惊和诧异。妈妈对印度文化毫无经验，却能做出这么一顿比“过得去”好太多的印度大餐。每个人大快朵颐之时，叽叽喳喳的议论声逐渐消失了，只在房间留下一种静默的满足感。

12. decent [?di?snt] adj. 过得去的，尚可的

Now the house is quiet. I pick up the dishes and take them into the kitchen. My mother is outside with my father saying good-bye to everyone. Even from inside the house, I can hear laughing. I hear one of my uncles yell in awkward English, "Next time you cook to my

house!"

现在房间里安静了。我收拾餐具把它们端进厨房。妈妈在外面和爸爸一起送别每位来客。即使在屋里，我也能听见笑声。我听见我的一个叔叔用蹩脚的英语大声说：“下次你来我的房子烧饭！”

Two years later, I wake to the smell of curry. I walk outside to see my eldest aunt squatting by a fire. She rises to greet me with a tight hug and kiss. I see a bright yellow color cooking in the pot over the fire. My uncle is milking the buffalo, and my cousin is buying vegetables from a man pulling a cart.

两年后，我闻着咖喱的味道醒来。我走到外面，看见大姑蹲在炉火旁。她站起来和我打招呼，给了我一个紧紧的拥抱和一个吻。我看见炉火上的锅里煮着亮黄色的东西。叔叔在给水牛挤奶，堂哥在从一个拉小车的小贩那里买菜。

I am where it all originated: Punjab, India. It is where my other half was born. No one speaks English here; no one dresses like me or even looks like me. I get weird stares whenever I walk to the market. Despite that, for the ?rst time I feel like I belong.

我现在就在这一切的起源地：印度的旁遮普。这是另外半个我诞生的地方。这里没有人说英语，没有人穿得像我这样，甚至没有人看上去像我这样。我无论什么时候走到市场上都会遭遇异样的目光。尽管如此，我却第一次感觉自己是属于这里的。

It seems as if my mother"s adaptation to the Indian culture helped me grow closer to my Indian roots. If it weren"t for her, I would have been indifferent to being half Indian. Now I cherish my multiculturalism more than I ever have. I think about this as I sit at the table with a cup of warm buffalo milk and a bowl of aloo gobi, savoring this food for the ?rst time in the place where it all began.

妈妈对印度文化的适应似乎帮助我逐渐靠近了我的印度根。如果不是因为她，我可能会对自己有一半印度血统漠不关心。现在我比以往任何时候都更加珍惜我的多元文化。在思考这件事的时候，我正坐在桌子旁，面前是一杯热乎乎的水牛奶和一碗香辣土豆花椰菜，生平第一次在这个一切开始的地方享受这种美食。

END