Edward Lee Remembers NaiNai, his Grandma Yee-Jung Lee

[中文翻译]

    I guess I could take this time to say all the things that one expects from someone who’s up here but I’ll spare you that.   
    For as long as I remember, my parents both worked.  So, when the school day was over it was my grandmother’s place that I came back to and called home.
    I remember each day walking to her house from the bus stop and looking forward to whatever food she prepared for me that day.
    I think this sort of routine carried on until the 8^th grade.
    I would get something to eat, settle in and get prepared to do that day’s homework on the dining table. 
    As was my wont, I would be a troublemaker—causing her no small headache.  She was always patient and good-natured about it, even when I managed to get on her last nerve. 
    Now that I think about it, though, it never really occurred to me (and I can’t seem to remember) what she did while I was studying or causing a ruckus. 
    But, there were always—always—great aromas wafting through the kitchen. 
    So, I guess that’s what she was doing when I was around after school—cooking; both for me and my exhausted parents when they came to pick me up from work that day. 
   And, I guess…that’s what grandmothers do—they cook for you and take care of you in the way that only they can. 
    Because her home was small, it was always warm and toasty at her house in the wintertime.    
    You know, in the end it’s the little things that I remember. 
    That’s what it’s always about because, while this may all sound banal and everyday, it’s what I remember best because it was in the day-to-day and the ordinariness of it all that I experienced a grandmother’s—my grandmother’s—great and encompassing love. 
    No overtures, no grandiose gesture—because, although it might be suitable for others, she was much simpler than that in her life and what she expected from it.
    I think I speak for at least a few of you when I say I wished she smiled more or that she was happier. 
    But, I don’t know if that’s fair as I think everyone experiences and expresses joy in different ways.
    Because she lived a life of sacrifice and self-abnegation, it seemed that she was always putting her own needs aside for those of other people. 
    I think it’s all too easy for me to forget that, aside from being my grandmother, she was also someone’s mother, someone’s wife…someone’s friend.
    And, as someone’s mother she sacrificed what she had to raise three sons by herself—sons that, when you look at them and the men they’ve become, undoubtedly make her happy, joyful and proud when it matters the most. 
    It’s so true that we always wish for what we never had.  All the could-ofs, all the would-haves. 
    I wish I had spent more quality time with her when it counted but…it’s okay because she knows—grandmothers just have a way of knowing. 
    You know, she would love how her family and friends have gathered here like this. 
    I think that’s what happens when someone you love passes on…it brings everyone together.
    She’d be proud of this moment right here.

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我本来也可以在这种场合说些应景的话。

但我不打算让大家听这一套。

自我有记忆以来﹐我父母就是双职工。

所以我放学后﹐总先回到奶奶公寓﹐那里就成了我的家。

我记得每天下了校车步行回她公寓路上﹐总盼望着她为我准备的食物。

这样的日子一直过到我八年级。
我到她家先吃点东西﹐安顿好了﹐就开始在餐桌上做作业。
我不改调皮的习性﹐没有少给她添麻烦。
但她总是很有耐心﹐很和气﹐不管我怎么惹她。
回想起来﹐当时我没有留意过(现在也想不起来)我做功课或胡闹时﹐她都在做些什么。
但是厨房那边永远﹐永远飘出食物的诱人的香味。
所以﹐我想那就是她在我放学后所做的事情﹐她在为我和(﹗)劳累一天﹐来接我回家的父母做饭。
那大概就是所有祖母所做的事情﹐她们用她们拿手的方式给你做饭﹐照顾你。
她的公寓很小﹐所以冬天屋里总是很暖和。
如今我想起的都是些鸡毛蒜皮的事。都是些繁琐的小事。
但也是在我脑海中留下最深刻印象的事。因为就是通过这些日常小事﹐我体验了一个祖母﹐我的祖母﹐的广阔包容的爱。
没有什么惊天动地的举动因为别人或许善于戏剧性的表达﹐她过着朴实的日子﹐她对人生也很淡薄。
我想一些亲人也许同意﹐她应该多一点微笑﹐多一些快乐。
但也许我不该这么想﹐毕竟每个人以他自己的方式体验和表达快乐。
她刻苦牺牲自我﹐总是把别人的需要摆在自己需要前面。
我也许不该忘记﹐她除了是我奶奶﹐她还是为人母亲﹑妻子﹑朋友。
作为母亲﹐她抚养三个儿子成人。她为此一定感到快乐自豪。这是她最在意的。
我们总想要自己所不曾有过的东西。有太多的遗憾。
我后悔没有在她最需要时跟她好好相处﹐不过没关系﹐她是了解的。祖母们总是心里有数的。
今天亲友们聚在这里﹐她一定很高兴。
我们所爱的人去世时﹒ ﹒ ﹒往往促成这种团聚。
她会为此感到骄傲。

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