網站截圖
【譯文】
曾祖父
「曾祖父？」我女兒問道，「我什麼時候可以嘗嘗靜寧蘋果？」
這是四年來的第一次，我們6歲的孩子和她的中國曾祖父進行了面對面的交談。正是微信，終於使得在不同的國家的他們，歷經千山萬水將中國甘肅省的山區和我們遠在英國的公寓聯通。曾祖父自豪地向我們展示了他最後一次收穫的蘋果。像往常一樣，他留了一箱最好的等待我們回家。它不只是一箱普通的蘋果。他從他的收穫中挑選出最好的果子留給了他最最牽掛的人。然而年復一年，它們在冰冷的倉庫裡等待著。在隨後幾個月的時間裡，它們甘甜的汁液開始減少，明亮的顏色開始退卻……我還清楚地記得我第一次吃靜寧蘋果的情景，那是一顆剛從果樹上摘下來的蘋果。我對它的味道充滿好奇，但只咬了一口我就明白了，並且深深的愛上了它。不到一小時，我就狼吞虎咽的吃了五個。靜寧具有高海拔和顯著的溫度差異，這無疑是一個適合種植蘋果的完美環境。
曾祖父到達蘇格蘭機場
在我們第一次視頻聊天的幾周後，新花又在蘋果樹上綻放。除了每棵樹的底部還堆積著少量的積雪外，其他的雪都已經融化了。曾祖父在果林間忙碌的穿梭著，山間的小村莊裡飄蕩著蘋果花的芳香。他有一個主意，如果我們不能把女兒帶回到他的果園裡，讓女兒實地品嘗靜寧蘋果的話，他就會親自把最好的蘋果帶給她。他已經快80歲了，但是仍然身手敏捷，他順著梯子爬到他最喜歡的果樹的樹枝上。仔細地檢查著那些花，然後判斷哪些花會長成最甜的蘋果，將那些不合格的花從樹上摘下來。
我們一家
這些花現在已經長成小蘋果了，離收穫還有幾周的時間。又一次，曾祖父爬上梯子，小心翼翼地用一個特殊的袋子包住每一個蘋果。這些袋子由三層組成。外面是淺棕色，中間是黑色的襯裡，最靠近蘋果的那層是紅色的。這將保護幼果，防止褐斑或瑕疵的出現，也幫助蘋果均勻的著色。晚上，曾祖父坐在一張叫炕的傳統床上，望著窗外，一場大冰雹席捲了大山。黎明時分，他猛衝到果園裡，發現許多蘋果，儘管仍在包裡，卻被無情地打到地上。他再一次爬上了梯子。然而他的一個孫女的蘋果卻沒有在這次冰雹襲擊中倖存下來。
農場裡的曾祖父
幾個星期過去了。蘋果差不多成熟了。他花了幾天時間從果園裡的每一個蘋果上去掉袋子的外層。幾年前，他從樹上掉下來，弄傷了聽力，但他依然爬上爬下，夜以繼日的照料著他的果園。內部的紅色層仍保留在蘋果上。如果將其過早地去掉，蘋果就會被突如其來的強光所破壞。等到習慣了強光，曾祖父就爬上梯子，去除掉這最後一層。蘋果現在呈現出一種可口的顏色，幾乎可以採摘了。這時，曾祖父從他住的地方搬至果園。他睡在那裡，以保護他心愛的蘋果。白天，他爬上樹，逐個檢查每個蘋果的受色，他將那些受色不均勻蘋果蒼白的一面朝太陽的方向轉動，並移走摘除那些擋住光線的葉子，以確保整個蘋果呈現出誘人的紅色。
靜寧老家
從他的收成中，他仍然保存著一箱最好的蘋果，但這次他決定親自將它送給我們。在蘋果商拿走剩餘收成的幾個星期後，他終於收到熱切期待的付款。曾祖父離開山村去了靜寧縣城，他申請了他的第一本護照。一拿到護照，他繼續前行，乘坐另一輛公共汽車去天水市最近的火車站。他將只身前往杭州申請籤證。護照和籤證準備好了，他小心地包裝著他的2公斤重的靜寧蘋果，因為新鮮水果被海關限制到了最低限度，並前往西安機場。經過兩次複雜的轉機後，他終於抵達了蘇格蘭。
「孫女！」他叫道：「看，我給你帶來了你的靜寧蘋果！」
Felicity Miller第一次來到中國教英語，然後遇到了她的丈夫。現在她和她的家人住在英國。
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【原文】
Great grandfather [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
"Great-grandfather?" my daughter asked. "When can I try a Jingning apple?"
Our daughterIsla Rose [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
It was the first time in four years our 6 year old had been able to have a face-to-face chat with her Chinese great-grandfather. However, they were in different countries this time and it was WeChat that finally brought the mountains of Gansu province closer to our flat in the UK. Great-grandfather proudly showed us the last of his apple harvest. As usual he had saved us a box just in case we visited. It wasn't just a box of ordinary apples. He had picked the finest samples from his harvest. Year after year they sat in the cold store waiting. Over the months, their sweet juice began to lighten in weight and their bright color began to fade. I vividly remember my first bite of a Jingning apple picked straight from the orchard. I had wondered what all the fuss was about, but after just one bite I understood. Within just an hour I had devoured five. Jingning enjoys a perfect setting for growing Fuji apples with a high altitude and striking temperature differences.
Great grandfather arriving at the airport in Scotland[Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
A few weeks later after our first video chat on WeChat, the new blossoms began to appear on the trees. The snow had all but melted other than the snow great-grandfather had packed around the bottom of each tree. He walked through the bouquet of branches, a sweet fragrance floating across the mountain hamlet. He had an idea. If we couldn't take our daughter to his terraced mountain and finally try a Jingning apple, he would take the finest Jingning apples to her. Nearly 80 years old but still agile on his feet, he climbed the ladder to the higher branches of his favorite tree. He meticulously examined the blossoms before deciding which flowers would grow into the sweetest apples. Those that failed his examination were picked off the tree.
Our family [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
The blossoms had now grown into small apples, still many weeks away from harvest. Once more great-grandfather climbed the ladder and carefully covered each apple with a special bag. The bag consists of three layers. The outside is a light brown, the middle is a black lining, and the layer closest to the apple is red. This would protect the young apples, preventing brown spots or blemishes from appearing; and also helping the apple achieve an even coloring. At night he sat on the traditional bed called a kang and watched out the window as a large hail storm swept across the mountain. Awake at dawn he dashed to his orchard and found many apples, although still in their bags, had been ruthlessly beaten to the ground. He climbed the ladder once more. One of his great granddaughter's apples hadn't survived the onslaught.
Great-grandfather on the farm [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
Several weeks passed. The apples were almost ready. It took him a few days to remove the outer layers of the bags from every apple in the orchard. A few years ago he had fallen out of the tree and damaged his hearing but up and down the ladder he continued to look after all his crop. The inner red layer was kept on the apple. If this were to be removed too early, the fruit would be damaged by the unexpected glare from the sunlight. Once accustomed to the sun, great-grandfather climbed the ladder again to remove the final layer. The apple was now a delicious color and almost ready to pick. At this time, great-grandfather moved from his courtyard kang into the orchard hut. He slept there protecting his orchard and his great granddaughter's apples. During the day he ascended the tree to individually check on the redness of his treasured collection. He turned the paler sides to face the direction of the sun and removed some surrounding leaves that blocked the light.
The mountains where great grandfather lives [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
From his harvest, he still kept that one box of his finest apples but this time he was determined to deliver them himself. Once the middleman had taken the remainder of his harvest, it was several weeks before he received his eagerly awaited payment. Great-grandfather climbed down the mountain and took the intervillage bus to the main Jingning town where he applied for his very first passport. Once he had his passport, he climbed down the mountain and took a different bus to the nearest train station in Tianshui. He traveled alone to Hangzhou and applied for his visa. Passport and visa ready, he delicately packed his 2 kilogram bag of Jingning apples -- as fresh fruit is restricted by customs to just a minimal amount -- and journeyed to the airport in Xian. Two complex airport transfers later, he arrived in Scotland.
A group photo near the queen's Balmoral castle [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
"Great granddaughter!" he exclaimed, "I have brought you your Jingning apples!"
Felicity Miller first came to teach English in China and then met her husband. Now she is living in the UK with her family.
來源：chinadaily（中國日報網）
作者：Felicity Miller（米靜Felicity）
翻譯：柳琦、魏晶
編輯：靜寧縣網信辦/楊春榮