The 4:30 parade

译者：孙仲旭

有很多事情让我为自己有了个三岁儿子而感到高兴，其中之一，是让我有资格参加四点半的游行，只是很特别的人才可以参加，只是那些有小孩子的人。

这种游行无论春夏秋冬，每天下午在纽约举行，是在太阳开始往下落，约翰尼该洗个澡、吃晚饭的时候，我们都知道。太阳开始落下时，这一天就结束了，该领孩子回家了。我们就都开始走出公园，等着交通灯转绿，四点半的游行就开始了，也就是走路回家：当妈妈的，坐在手推车里的小孩子和会走路的小孩子，他们的保姆，要么时不时还会有他们的爸爸，例如我。每到举行圣帕特里克节以及其他大型游行的季节，报纸上长篇累牍都是关于那些游行的事，可是对我来说，四点半的游行才是我最关心的。

有一天，太阳开始落下之前，我和约翰尼遇到了这件事，他不会记得，但是我会。当时他在跟一个名叫卡尔顿的小孩在沙箱里玩，我坐在旁边，听他们说话。

“你妈咪呢？”卡尔顿问。

“妈咪在家里。”约翰尼说。

他们两个人在忙着干大事，包括往一个垃圾车上装沙子然后再倒空。

卡尔顿说：“那你带谁过来了？谁跟你一起来的？”

“我爸爸。你看，看！”约翰尼说，“你想看看我爸爸吗？”

他们两个人都直起身，身上全是沙，约翰尼抓着卡尔顿的手，把他往沙箱外面领了几步，他们都盯着我看。

约翰尼弯着一只食指指着我，他指的时候，食指始终有点弯曲。“看，那是我爸爸。”约翰尼说。

他们两个人看着我。卡尔顿没说什么。约翰尼抓过他的手，他们又回到了沙箱那边。

太阳越来越低，该回家了。我心情很好，因为约翰尼觉得值得把他的朋友领过来，把我指给他看，这种事，我经历的次数根本不是很多。

这种游行，是从公园开始沿着七十二街往东。我相信在纽约，我们这里有全世界最好的门房，他们知道每天下午经过的各个小朋友的名字。他们跟我的小男孩说：“你今天过得好吗，约翰尼？”也会说：“你好，卡尔顿，你今天过得好吗？”约翰尼和卡尔顿细声细气地答话。

我们离开玩乐场时，有各种各样的人，因为在我们那一带，有纽约自己的各种各样人热情地混合在一起。有约瑟芬，还有她的朋友——照看两个小男孩托尼和斯考特的阿琳；还有一些可爱的年轻妈妈，像芭蕾舞演员那样姿态轻盈，也许她们中间有人以前就是跳芭蕾舞的；还有德国保姆，法国保姆——她们跟她们的小男孩、小女孩说法语；偶尔会有一个骄傲却不露声色的爸爸，比如我自己。

游行队伍一路往东而去，队伍中的人越来越少，因为有小孩跟他们的妈妈、保姆或者爸爸拐进他们的公寓楼。我们走路时，几乎占了整条人行道，大家都走在一起，谈论孩子们翻筋斗，还谈论到了冬天，有时候下雪可以让孩子们玩，他们该有多开心；整场游行是由一群志同道合的人参加，是这个城市最令人身心愉快的事。

我一边走，一边忍不住想到在约翰尼出生之前，一年中有多少次我走在同一条街上，那些门房和过路人，我看着都跟现在不一样，就像他们看着我也不一样——我的这点感觉很真切。尽管他们多数都是陌生人，可是我拉着约翰尼的手走路时，他们好像更友好、更善解人意，他们不说话，但是表情在明明白白却又不用言语地说：“我家里也有个这样的。他们可不是让人喜欢极了的小家伙？”要么如果那个扫了一眼的陌生人年纪大，他们的眼睛里会有种很难察觉和一瞬即过的伤感，他或者她似乎在说：“我以前也有个那样的孩子。”

不管怎么样，这个不时有人退去的四点半游行队伍到了第二大街和七十二街的路口（我们的家在那里）时，街角书报摊主马克西会在招呼顾客的空当喊一声：“嗨，约翰尼！”约翰尼也许会用一把想象出来的手枪向马克西开枪来回答。“晚餐愉快，约翰尼！”我们又往前走向我们的大门时，马克西大声说。

好了，约翰尼的确洗了个澡，好好吃了顿晚饭，然后就上床睡觉。之后，我和费思看了一会儿电视，可是一半时候，我看得完全心不在焉，只是想着明天还会有一场四点半的游行，那会有何等愉快。

There are many things that make me happy that I have a three-year-old son. One of them is that it qualifies me to take part in the 4:30 parade, which is only for very special people, it's just people with little kids. Every afternoon in New York, in spring, summer, autumn, and winter, the parade was held when the sun began to set and Johnny was supposed to take a bath and have dinner. The day ends when the sun begins to set, and it's time to take the child home. We all started walking out of the park, waiting for the light to turn green, and the 4:30 parade started, which was walking home: Mothers, Little Kids in wheelbarrows and toddlers, their nannies, or they have a dad every once in a while, like me. During Saint Patrick's Day and other major parades, the newspapers are filled with articles about the parades, but for me, the 4:30 parade is my main concern. One day, just before the sun began to set, this happened to me and Johnny. He wouldn't remember, but I would. He was playing in the sandbox with a kid named FC Kärnten, and I sat next to him and listened. "Where's Your Mommy?" FC Kärnten asked. "Mommy's home," Johnny said. The two of them were busy doing big things, including filling a garbage truck with sand and emptying it. "So who did you bring? Who came with you?" FC Kärnten said. "My dad. Look, Look!" Johnny said, "would you like to see my dad?" They both stood up straight and covered in sand. Johnny took FC Kärnten by the hand and led him a few steps out of the sandbox. They both stared at me. Johnny pointed to me with a crooked forefinger, which was always a little crooked as he pointed. "look, that's my dad," Johnny said. Both of them looked at me. FC Kärnten said nothing. Johnny took his hand and they went back to the sandbox. The Sun is getting low. It's time to go home. I was in a good mood because Johnny thought it was worth bringing his friend over and pointing me out, something I hadn't experienced many times. The parade starts at the park and goes east along seventy-two street. I believe in New York, we have the best concierge in the world, and they know the names of the children who pass by every afternoon. They say to my little boy, "How are you today, Johnny?" and they say, "Hello, FC Kärnten, How Are You Today?" Johnny and FC Kärnten Answer Softly. When we left the playground, there were all kinds of people, because in our neighborhood, there was a passionate mix of New York's own variety. There was Josephine, and her friends, Lum Invader, who looked after the little boys Tony and Scott, and the lovely young mothers, light as a ballerina, perhaps some of them had been ballet dancers before; German nannies, French nannies -- they spoke French to their little boys and girls; occasionally had a proud but unassuming father, like myself. As the procession headed east, fewer and fewer people were in it, as children and their mothers, nannies or fathers turned into their apartment buildings. When we walked, we took up almost the whole sidewalk. We all walked together and talked about the children doing somersaults and how happy they must have been in winter, when sometimes it snowed to let them play The whole parade was attended by a group of like-minded people, which was the most enjoyable thing in the city. As I walked, I could not help thinking how many times a year before Johnny was born I had walked down the same street, and the porters and passers-by, they looked different to me, just as they looked at me differently -- and I felt it with all my heart. Although most of them were strangers, they seemed friendlier and more understanding when I held Johnny's hand. They didn't speak, but the look on his face was clear but he said without words, "I have one of those at home. Aren't they adorable little guys?" Or if the stranger who glances at them is older, there's a subtle, fleeting sadness in their eyes, and he or she seems to be saying, "I had a kid like that once." The 4:30 parade, which was occasionally backed off, reached the corner of second and seventy-two (where we live) , around the corner, Maksi, the newsstand owner, would call out "Hey, Johnny!" As he greeted customers. Johnny might answer by shooting Maksi with an imaginary pistol. "have a nice dinner, Johnny!" Maksi shouted as we walked toward our front door. Well, Johnny did take a bath, had a good dinner, and then went to bed. After that, Feth and I watched TV for a while, but half the time, I was totally distracted, just thinking how much fun it would be to have a 4:30 parade tomorrow.

标题: 四点半的游行
作者: 约翰·麦克纳尔蒂
字数: 1549
简介: 译者：孙仲旭有很多事情让我为自己有了个三岁儿子而感到高兴，其中之一，是让我有资格参加四点半的游行，只是很特别的人才可以参加，只是那些有小孩子