She used to sleep in the Post Office of Fifth Street. I could smell her before I rounded the entrance to where she slept, standing up, by the public phones. I smelled the urine that seeped through the layers of her dirty clothing and the decay from her nearly toothless mouth. If she was not asleep, she mumbled something.
Now they close the post office at six to keep the homeless out, so she curls up on the sidewalk, talking to herself, her mouth flapping open as though unhinged, her smells weakened by the soft breeze.
One Thanksgiving we had so much food left over, I packed it up, excused myself from the others and drove over to
It was a very cold night. Leaves were swirling around the streets and hardly anyone was out, all but a few of the luckless in some warm home or shelter. But I knew I would find her.
She was dressed as she always was, even in summer: The warm woolly layers covering her old, bent body. Her bony hands clutched the precious shopping cart. She was squatting against a wire fence in front of the playground next to the post office. “Why didn’t she choose some place more protected from the wind?” I thought, and assumed she was so crazy she did not have the sense to huddle in a doorway.
I pulled my shiny car to the roadside, rolled down the window and said, “Mother...would you...” and was shocked at the word “Mother”.
I said, again, “Mother, I’ve brought you some food. Would you like some turkey and stuffing and apple pie?”
At this the old woman looked at me and said quite clearly and distinctly, her two loose lower teeth wobbling as she spoke, “Oh, thank you very much, but I’m quite full now. Why don’t you take it to someone who really needs it?” Her words were clear, her manners gracious. Then I was dismissed: Her head sank into her rags again.
【日积月累】
◇urine n. 小便，尿
◇seep v. 渗出，漏，渗流
◇unhinged adj. 精神错乱的
◇woolly adj. 模糊的
【参考译文】
她以前睡在第五街道的邮政局里面。在走过她睡觉那地方的出口之前，我就能闻出立在公共电话旁边的她。我能闻到从她脏兮兮的衣服里渗透出的尿骚味，还有她那牙齿脱落的嘴里发出的腐臭气。如果她不在睡觉，嘴里就会说着什么.
现在邮政局6点关门,把这些无家可归的人赶了出去，所以她就在路旁蜷缩成一团，自言自语。她的嘴巴好像神志不清般地敞开着。微风吹散了她的气味。
有一年的感恩节，我们剩下了很多食物，我打了包，向大伙说了一声便开车向第五街道驶去。
那天晚上天很冷，树叶在街道上打着转，几乎没什么人出门。那些可怜的人大多数都找到了温暖的落脚地或避难所，但是我知道我能找到她。
她穿得就像平常一样，即使在夏天她也是一样的装束。暖和的羊毛外套包裹着她衰老佝偻的身躯。她瘦骨铮铮的手紧紧攥着那辆珍贵的购物车。在邮政局旁边的操场前，她蹲在栅栏前面。“为什么她不选择个更避风的地方呢？”我想。我觉得她肯定疯了，她竟然没想到要躲进哪个地方。
我把我锃亮的车停在路边，摇下车窗说：“大娘你可以――”。我被自己说出的“大娘”这个词吓到了。
我接着说：“大娘，我给你带来些吃的。你喜欢火鸡和苹果派吗？”
听到这话，老大娘看着我清楚地说，一边说她那下排稀疏的牙齿一边摇动：“噢，太谢谢你啦。不过我现在吃得很饱。你何不把它给其他需要的人？”她的话字字清晰，举止得体。接着我就离开了。她又把头埋进了自己褴褛的衣服里。
【人生启迪】
世界上不乏有故事中主人公这样乐于助人的人，但是在做好事的时候，我们有时也要注意自己的行为举止，因为助人为乐与施舍的界限有时很难区分。