母親的愛之味Taste of Love
佚名/Anonymous
After several months of annoying body aches and pains, a friend suggested I start taking vitamins and some organic, unrefined oils to aid in my overall health.
I was interested in getting myself back into better shape and so it didn’t take much to convince me.Then once I began using them, I liked the results, less headaches, more energy; they seemed to be working.I faithfully took the five capsules every day until the time came when I needed to get some refills.
I looked through the mail-order catalog and found the stuff I wanted to order.Then, I looked further down and discovered the product any good mother would want to give her children.I found the children’s version of these oil pills I had been taking.I carefully read the description and without hesitation placed my order.
Soon the small box arrived at our doorstep just before my two oldest boys arrived home from school.My freshly baked brownies were cooling on the kitchen counter and I was excited to greet them.I looked at the delightful bottle their special product had arrived in and smiled contentedly to myself.Darling little jungle animals decorated the bottle.Big, bold lettering emphasized the scrumptious butterscotch flavor.An eye-catching caption said it was delicious over desserts! I suddenly had an idea!
My guys bounded up the street and took their usual places around the kitchen table eagerly awaiting their afternoon snack.I told them about the yummy brownies and they were practically salivating with anticipation! Carefully I cut each of my three sons a warm square of brownie.I diverted their attention and poured a few thick drops of this oil on top of their brownies.The oil sat there on the brownies for a moment, almost like it was saying,“Are you sure you want to do this?”But then it seeped deep into the dark chocolate.They’d never know I had added some health food in the middle of this treat.Ah ha!
I presented each boy with their own plate and it was Nathaniel, the oldest and most discerning that asked me,“Mom, what’s that on the brownies?”I gingerly walk around the question and encouraged him to dig in.The bite had barely entered his mouth when he grimaced and contorted.He held the moist brownie bits on the curl of his tongue hoping not to swallow any and cried,“Ugh! Mom, these are sick! What did you do? They taste terrible!”I tried not to laugh and despite me encouraging him to try another bite, ( he was almost gagging from the first one.) he quickly declined.Seeing their big brother so grossed out, the other boys suddenly lost their interest in their snack.They just wanted to leave the table on an empty stomach without incident.
Perhaps you can relate.I wanted to be the best mom in the world with a homemade snack and some health food all rolled up into one great afternoon treat.Again my attempt to sneak more nutrition into their meals was foiled.The tofu I had added to their tacos one time was a bomb.The seitanmashed soy bean curdI had cooked and tried to present as chicken was a culinary calamity.And although I had experienced moderate success with spinach brownies, it was clear I blew it again!
While the taste of that nasty concoction will hopefully fade from my son’s mind one day, I do hope he does remember one thing.His mom tried.God bless her soul, she tried.She didn’t hit the mark with everything she made but she did have a yummy kind of love for her family.She didn’t always make the best stuff in the world but she had a good recipe for life.She never forgot the secret ingredient of sweet love.It was never omitted.
Perhaps when he gets older, recalling all the food disasters, Nathaniel will be able to reflect upon our life as a family and see the deliciousness in it all.And simply smile remembering the taste of love only a mother can give.
惱人的疼痛糾纏了我幾個月後，一個朋友提議讓我嚐試一下維生素和一些有機的、未提煉的油類產品，以促進我身體健康的全麵恢複。
我正對盡快恢複求之不得，所以毫不猶豫地接受了朋友的建議。然後，當我試用這些補品以後，頭疼減少了，精力更旺盛，這令我十分滿意。看來是這些補品發揮了作用。在需要購買補品之前，我每天都按時服用五粒膠囊。
我查看商品的郵購目錄，找到自己要訂購的東西。然後，我又往下看，看到任何一位好母親都不會錯過的產品。我發現我一直服用的油類補藥還有兒童服用係列。我認認真真地看了一下說明書，然後毫不猶豫地簽了訂單。
我很快就收到了訂購的商品。那會兒，我的大兒子和二兒子還沒放學。我先是把剛出爐的果仁巧克力蛋糕放在廚房的案子上涼著，然後滿懷興奮地等待兒子們回家。看著漂亮的小瓶子——裏麵是為孩子買的特殊商品，我感到很高興，並且會心地笑了起來。瓶子上的圖案是可愛的叢林小動物，大大的粗體字進一步突出了這種產品擁有絕妙的奶油糖果香味。一個非常醒目的標題告訴我們：把它放在甜點上味道會更加美妙！這時，一個想法在我的心裏突然閃現。
我的兒子們蹦蹦跳跳地從街上跑回來，然後就坐在廚房餐桌旁各自的位置上，滿懷期待地準備享用午後餐點。不出所料，當我說出做了果仁巧克力蛋糕時，他們差點兒口水直流。我小心地給三個兒子每人切了一塊還有溫度的蛋糕。我先引開他們的注意力，然後在蛋糕上滴了幾滴黏稠的補品油。油在蛋糕上待了一會兒，好像在說：“你確定要這麽幹嗎？”可是，不久就滲進了深色的巧克力中。孩子們做夢也不會想到，我在他們的美味裏加進了營養物質。哈哈！
我依次把盤子端給孩子們。這時，最有警惕性的大兒子納撒尼爾問我：“媽媽，蛋糕上是什麽東西？”我謹慎地回避他的詢問，隻是督促他吃蛋糕。還沒等到咬的第一口吃到嘴裏，他的麵部就扭曲起來，顯得非常痛苦。他趕忙伸出舌頭，希望在舌尖上麵已經潮濕的那口蛋糕不要進入自己的嘴裏。隨後痛苦不堪地哭著說：“啊，媽媽，真惡心，你放了什麽？味道太糟糕了。”我強忍著不笑出聲來，鼓勵他再吃一口，（吃第一口時，他幾乎快要吐了。）他不假思索地拒絕了。看到他們的大哥如此受罪，另外兩個兒子馬上對蛋糕沒了興趣。他們為了安然無恙地離開，寧可餓著肚子。
也許，你能夠理解我的苦心。我想做世界上最好的媽媽，所以我為孩子們精心準備了下午的小吃，在自製的甜點裏加進了有助健康的營養品。可是，我私下裏給孩子們增加營養的計劃又一次失敗了。
我曾經在玉米麵卷中加入豆腐，產生了炸彈似的風波。我曾經努力把豆腐泥做成雞塊的樣子，帶來了災難性的結果。盡管我在果仁巧克力蛋糕裏放入菠菜被他們接受了，但這次我是徹底失敗了。
雖然我希望那令人厭惡的味道一天內就會被兒子遺忘，但我確實希望他能記住一件事：他的媽媽竭盡全力了。上帝會保佑她，她的確竭盡全力了。她做的食物都沒有她想得那麽好，但是，她有一顆愛家的心。她不是總能做出美味的食物，但是，她有正確的生活處方。她從未忘記甜蜜愛意的要素。它永遠不會被舍棄。
也許，納撒尼爾長大後，想起所體驗的食物風波時，能夠深深體會到我們一家人生活中的經曆，感悟到其中的美味。一旦想起母親賦予自己的愛之味時，他會心滿意足地微笑。
According to the speech, match each of the following words with itsmeaning.
(1) grimacea.element
(2) contort?b.to twist into or as if into a strained expression
(3) calamity?c.a disastrous event
(4) ingredient?d.a facial expression of pain
Write
TRUEif the statement agrees with the information
FALSEif the statement contradicts the information
_______(1) I faithfully took the three capsules every day until the time came when I needed.
_______(2) They’d know their mother had added some health food in the middle of this treat.
_______(3) Maybe Nathaniel will know his mother’s love when he grows up.
1.I_____getting myself back into better shape and so it didn’t take much to convince me.
我正對盡快恢複求之不得，所以毫不猶豫地接受了朋友的建議。
2.I carefully read the description and_______placed my order.
我認認真真地看了一下說明書，然後毫不猶豫地簽了訂單。
3.I told them about the yummy brownies and they were practically_______ anticipation!
當我說出做了果仁巧克力蛋糕時，他們差點兒口水直流。