Easter in Jackson 杰克逊的复活节

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Easter in Jackson 杰克逊的复活节
The pounding rain began in the middle of the night. 
半夜时分，下起了瓢泼大雨。

The people of Jackson, 
Ohio awoke to the sound then went back to sleep.

俄亥俄州杰克逊的人们被雨声惊醒， 但很快地又进入了梦乡。
But the rain continued.

而雨却继续下着。

Statistics said Jackson floods once every one hundred years,

据统计，杰克逊每100年发一次水灾，

but no one believed this would be the flood of the century. 

但谁也没有想到这次就是那场世纪水灾。

People were evacuated from their homes to higher ground, 
leaving everything behind.

人们顾不上携带财物，匆匆从家里撤离，逃向高地。

Buildings in the low-lying areas were immersed in water.

洼地里的建筑浸泡在水中。

People felt helpless as they watched Mother Nature show her power.

看着老天爷发威，人们束手无策。

Susan told the story to her students
and showed them pictures from the newspaper.

苏珊给学生讲了这件事，并给他们看报纸上的照片，

Immediately her students began raising money for the flood victims. 

学生们立即开始为洪水的受难者募集。

They sold lollipops,

他们去卖棒棒糖，
wrote letters to the community asking for donations 
and collected their own money.

写信给社区寻求捐助，还捐出了自己的积蓄。
Mountains of clothes，furniture and food piled up.

衣服、家具和食品堆得像小山一样。
Susan’s class made Easter baskets from shoe-boxes 
苏珊班里的同学们还用鞋盒子做成复活节礼筐，

and filled them with candy and toys 
as well as toothpaste，soap，toothbrushes and shampoo.

里面装上糖果、玩具、牙膏、肥皂、牙刷和洗发液等。

Susan and I drove there with these baskets.

我和苏珊开车去了灾区，车上装满了复活节礼筐。

We went from house to house, 

逐户拜访，
knocking on doors，ready to begin our mission. 

一家一家地敲门，准备开始我们的任务。

“Hello，I’m Susan Moore，
and this is my friend，Allison.

"你好，我是苏珊·摩尔，这是我的朋友艾利逊。

My sixth-graders at Pennyroyal Elementary made Easter baskets 
for you when they heard about the flooding.”

我们潘尼罗耶小学六年级的学生听说这儿发了洪水，特意为您制作了复活节礼筐，

Their faces lit up as they opened their gifts.

人们打开礼物时都露出欣喜之情。

As we entered one home，
a husband and wife were crouched over their floor with hammer and nails.

我们走入一户人家，丈夫和妻子正蹲伏在地上，手里拿着锤子和钉子。

When he opened the box，he began to cry.

丈夫打开盒子后，哭了起来。"

“I can’t believe those kids did this.

我真不敢相信这些孩子会这样做。

Let me give you some money for their school.”

让我拿些钱带给他们学校。

As I glanced at what was left of his home，

"我扫视了一下室内，家中财产所省无几，

I could not believe his generous spirit.

他的慷慨之举，令人难以置信。

He eventually conceded to write a thank-you note instead.

经我们劝说，他最终同意只写了一封感谢信。

One woman ran out to find us after opening her box，
tears rolling down her face.

一位妇女在打开盒子后连忙追了出来，脸上流着泪：

“I collected bunny rabbits，
and I lost them all in the flood.

"我收集了许多小兔子，但在洪水中全丢了。

There was a small pink rabbit in my box. 
I can start my collection again. 
Thank you.”

你们送我的盒子里有一只小粉兔，我又可以开始收集了。谢谢你们！

The burly man standing next to her also had tears in his eyes.
"站在她身边那个魁伟的男人眼里也含着泪。

My heart was warmed as I played the small role of messenger 
in this tribute to the good in the human spirit.

此次，我不过是尽人性之善的小使者，但能尽微薄之力我倍感温謦。

So often we hear of the shortcomings of our youth，
经常听到人们指责我们这代年轻人的缺点，

but these youngsters answered a cry for help 
但正是这些年轻人在天灾之时，回应了人们的求助，

and gave proof that generosity and love prevail.

证实了人世间充满了慷慨和爱心。