2016-12-26

【Aiden in English】

        You know, friendship is commonly expressed as a ship that sails the ocean. Every ship will eventually sink, but friendship is forever. As a child, the idea of a long-term friendship about 30 years is quite an abstract thought, since there aren’t many problems in life, nor is it considered very long.

        But when mom’s old friend came to visit from England, there was a visible bond that had existed for a long time.

        The very fact that the drive took about an hour and a half from PA to NJ showed the strength between mom and her friend, as not only was the drive long but last night we just came back and were still recovering from the L.A trip. Yet nothing stopped mom when she asked me to go, even when I didn’t want to. As usual, I bent to her will, and I hopped on the ride. Besides, there’s really nothing else to do around the house, and the weather outside was not suitable to be walking through. The day itself seemed pretty bleak, but it was one of the rare occasions mom was this excited for something. In hindsight, I must say, I can see why.

        As a matter of fact, the trip was actually fairly quick, instead of the projected hour and a half, we shaved off thirty minutes or so. Because we were just stopping by for possibly an hour or so, I really did not believe it was worth the drive. Once again, my mom convinced me by stating how strong the friendship from school, and therefore the importance, of this meeting, even if only for a couple of minutes. Upon arriving, the first thing mother did was to walk up to her longtime friend and hug her. Feeling kind of awkward, I moved away, but I was still astonished by how at ease they seemed.

        Even though they hadn’t seen each other for over four years, the relationship was still there. Although this had nothing to do with my life personally, I really want to see something later that would show a relationship that is just as strong as my mom. The very look on her face shows how much this meant to her, and her friend similarly beaming just as brightly. Their ships, even if they took separate paths from China, had finally regrouped, some twenty or so years later. In a new world, far away from their starting point, they did not care about their surroundings, as they were together, once again.

        At this point in life, friends are becoming more and more important. Larger problems appear more often in middle school, so the role of a good friend grows within everyone’s life. When I grow up, I hope to have a good friend that remains with me for a lifetime. These ships that sail forever, they are worth more than what money can buy.

        “A true friend unbosoms freely, advises justly, assists readily, adventures boldly, takes all patiently, defends courageously, and continues a friend unchangeably.” –William Penn

【红霞译文】

        如你所知，友谊往往被比作海上行驶的船舶，航船迟早会触礁，但友谊之舟却永不沉没。身为学童，对于长达近乎卅年的过往交情甚感不可思议，因为自己的生活本无太多波折，况且年岁确实没过多少。

        但当妈妈的老朋友从英国远道来访，彼此之间长期建立的亲密情谊便可略见一斑。

        单凭不惜从宾州赶往新州驱车一个半钟头看望朋友的豪迈壮举，足以表明彼此间友谊的魅力，这可不是单纯路途遥远的问题，殊不知昨夜我们刚从洛杉矶旅游归来，眼下仍然处在休整阶段，然而当妈妈要我同行时，已经没有什么能够让她改变初衷，即使我不想去也白搭。如同往常一样，我随妈妈所愿，跳上车疾驰离去，反正待在屋内也没事好做，而户外温度又不适合散步闲荡，今个天气看上去相当阴沉，妈妈倒一反常态，似乎对某些事情特别起劲，俗话说得好，人逢喜事精神爽。事后回想起来，我明白一切缘何而起。

        事实上，这回车开得飞快，原本路上需要花费一个半钟头，结果愣让我们省出卅分钟左右。鉴于我们仅有大约一个小时的见面时间，我觉得实在犯不上劳神来回折腾，妈妈则不以为然，再三强调读书年代建立的阶级友谊根深蒂固，因此这次聚会非常重要，哪怕只是简单地打个照面。当我们到达之后，妈妈所做的第一件事就是走上前去拥抱这位旧交，我凉在旁边难免觉得有点尴尬，下意识退出视线，亲眼目睹他们谈笑风生，确实让我惊讶不已。

        过去四年来尽管他们天各一方从没相见，但青山在人未老友情依旧，诚然这跟我个人生活毫无关系，可我真心希望自己与朋友之间的友谊也能像妈妈一样历久弥新。就妈妈相逢时所流露的微笑表情来看，其内心喜悦尽在不言之中。从祖国启航后，他们所乘坐的友谊之船纷纷沿着不同航线行驶，经过廿多年长途跋涉重又相聚，而且在远离家乡的全新世界里，彼此友谊并没有因为地域变化而变化。

        在我个人现有生活中，朋友变得越来越重要，初中阶段时常面临更加棘手的问题，因此良朋知己可以对每个人的生活产生积极影响。在成长过程中，我希望有好友相伴天长地久，大家同舟共济，这要比金钱买到的东西更珍贵。

        “真正的朋友应该开诚布公，互相尊重，互相帮助，互相支持，互相信任，互相鼓励，不管发生什么都不离不弃。” ──威廉·佩恩