The Rule of Ten
    佚名 / Anonymous
    Love and habit had brought the old man to the row of strawberries that grew along the  south side of the small cottage he had called home for more than thirty years. The mid -morning May sun had warmed him as he worked to rid the plants of weeds and now he was  feeling the effects of having stooped too long and felt the thirst that only a large  tumbler of ice tea would quench.
    The house was still cool and quiet as he found his favorite glass and poured the tea he  would carry to his usual resting spot outside. The old glider squeaked and sagged as it  accepted his weight. Warm spring winds wafted across his weathered face carrying the  aroma of blooming lilacs and honeysuckle. He felt the coolness of the glass in his hand  and closed his eyes to shut off all the visual senses that would disturb the sounds and  smells of spring. He let his mind shuffle through the pages of his memory until it came  to a stop on a page that he enjoyed the most. Countless spring days had been spent in  this glider when his wife was still here and still sharing the ritual of the rule of  ten.
    He remembered how she had cajoled him into planting the strawberries when they had  first bought the small house that was to be their home. She had promised to tend them  and always make sure they were well cared for but she never did. The old man just  accepted the care of the strawberries as one more duty he was to perform. Even after  his wife had passed away  he kept the little patch, as though she were still alive and  still sitting at his side. Each evening she would take a small container to pick only  the ten best berries from the vines. They would sit together in that old glider and  talk of the day's events. There was seldom anything special to fill their  conversation, just the easy banter that passed between two people who had become very  good and old friends. And so much more. When he asked her why she picked only ten  strawberries she would answer that it just seemed right to her and the old man accepted  her answer as though it could only be the right one. He had grown used to her  quirkiness and, in fact, he had been fond of it.
    The hushed voices of excited children invaded his reverie. “Look at all the  strawberries,” said the one voice. The old man lifted himself from the glider and  hurried towards the sound of voice. When he turned the corner he bellowed, in his best  gruff voice, “The rule is ten!” The startled boys were frozen with fear and  momentarily afraid to speak. “Are these strawberries yours, mister?” asked the older  looking boy.
    “They are, and you and your friends there can take ten of the best ones but only ten. “ The boys seemed perplexed and asked the old man why just ten. “Because it's the  only way they've ever been picked.”
    “Ten each?” asked the boy. The old man nodded his head yes and the boys fell to the  ground eagerly picking and counting the strawberries as they plucked them from the  vines. When they had their ten they ran off laughing and thanking the old man. “Can we  come back tomorrow?” Again the old man nodded yes. “But remember the rule is ten!”  He watched until the boys were out of sight. As he made his way back to the inside of  the house the old man wondered if the children had thought the house was vacant. He  convinced himself they probably didn't think anyone lived here. The irony was they  were more right than they knew.
    He listened to the quiet hum of the window fan and felt the still cool morning air that  filled the bedroom. The studio picture of him and his wife on their silver anniversary  made him wince as he thought of her absence. “I'm still here sweetheart and I still  miss you.” He said aloud as he stretched back on to the bed and quickly drifted into  sleep.
    Did the boys return the next day and honor the rule of ten? Write your own ending dear  reader. Because on the eve of the old man's golden anniversary to the only woman he  ever knew or loved, with the quiet hum of the fan and the still cool morning air of  early spring touching his face, the old man went to sleep... Forever.

    爱和习惯带着这位老人来到那片草莓前。那片草莓就沿着他的小屋的南边生长着。他已在这间小茅 屋里生活了30多年，这里就是他的家。5月早上的太阳温暖地照在他的身上，他正在为草莓除草。5月上午的太阳照得人暖融融的。此时因为弯腰时间太长，他感到又累又渴，只有一大杯冰茶才能消 止。
    老人找出自己最心爱的杯子，倒上茶，来到外面他经常休息的地方时，屋里还是很凉爽、很安静。 当他坐上那张破旧的摇椅时，椅子吱吱地响着，下垂出很大的弧度。暖融融的春风带着盛开的丁香 和忍冬的花香，吹过他沧桑的面庞。他感觉手中玻璃杯的凉爽，慢慢地闭上眼睛，切断了一切可能 扰乱春天的声音和气息的视觉景象。他任由自己的思绪穿过记忆的一页又一页，最后在他最想停留 的那一页止步。就这样，他穿越了无数个春日来到这里。那时他的妻子还在这里，还和他一起分享 着十的规则。
    他清楚地记得，当他们最初买下这间屋安家的时候，她是怎样用甜言蜜语哄骗他种下这片草莓的。 她曾许下诺言要照管它们，一定会时常给予它们照料，但是她从来没做到过。老人就只把照料草莓 当作是另一项自己必须要履行的责任。即便在妻子去世之后，他还留着这片草莓，就好像妻子还活 着，还坐在自己身边一样。每个傍晚，妻子都会拿着一只小竹篮去摘10个最好的草莓。然后他们会 一起坐在那张旧摇椅上，聊着白天的事情。他们的交谈中很少有什么特别的内容，只是要好的两个 老朋友间随意地说笑而已。当他询问她为什么每次都只摘10个草莓时，她回答说对她来说10个刚好 合适。老人接受了她的回答，就好像只有这样的回答才是正确的。他已经习惯了她的怪异，事实上 ，也早已喜欢上了。
    他的思绪被兴奋的孩子们压低嗓门的说话声打断。“快看那些草莓。”有一个声音说。当他转过拐 角时，就用最粗暴的声音怒吼到：“只许摘10个！”受到惊吓的孩子们都怔住了，一时间谁也不敢 做声。看上去年长的一个男孩问道：“先生，这些草莓是您的吗？”
    “对。你和你的这些朋友可以摘10个最好的，但是只能摘10个。”孩子们感到非常不解，便问老人 只能摘10个的原因是什么。“因为它们一直都是这样摘的。”
    “我们每个人都能摘10个吗？”小男孩问道。老人点头表示赞同。孩子们急忙俯身一边挑选着，一 边数着采摘的草莓数。当他们采摘完10个，谢过老人后就笑着跑开了。“明天我们还能来摘吗？” 老人再次点点头，“但是记住，只能摘10个！”他望着孩子们的身影消失在视野中。在回屋的路上 他猜想着，是不是那些孩子们以为这房子是空的。他对自己的猜测深信不疑，这些孩子可能认为这 里没人居住。可笑的是，这些孩子们真的猜对了。
    他听着排风扇微弱的嗡嗡声，感觉到卧室的空气还有些凉爽。当他想到妻子的离去时，他与妻子银 婚纪念日的照片使他感到心酸。他大声地说，“亲爱的，我依然在这里，依旧想念你。”他伸直脊 背躺在床上，很快就沉睡过去。
    第二天孩子们来了吗？他们有没有遵守“只能摘10个”的规矩呢？我亲爱的读者，您自己来为这个 故事结尾吧。因为在老人和他唯一的、深爱的女人金婚纪念日的前夜，伴着排风扇的嗡嗡声和依旧 凉爽的早春晨风的抚摩，老人睡去了，永远……

    记忆填空
    1. He felt the coolness of the glass in his hand and  his eyes to shut off all the visual senses that would the sounds and smells of          .
    2. Countless spring days had been in this glider when his wife was still here and still the ritual of the of ten.
    3. Even his wife had passed away he the little patch,
    though she were still alive and still sitting at his side.

    佳句翻译
    1. 5月上午的太阳照得人暖融融的。
    2. 就这样，他穿越了无数个春日来到这里。
    3. 亲爱的，我依然在这里，依旧想念你。

    短语应用
    1. and now he was feeling the effects of having stooped too long and felt the thirst that only a large tumbler of ice tea would quench.
    the effect of：……的影响
    2. Even after his wife had passed away he kept the little patch, as though she were still alive and still sitting at his side.
    as though：犹如，好像，似乎，仿佛
    ……

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