《婆母，我頭頂的祥雲 》作者：陳苑苑
The Australia Chinese New Arts Society and 90.1 NBC FM welcomes you to 『Days in Australia』.
觀眾朋友，您好！澳洲新藝術聯合會和90.1 NBC FM 廣播電臺歡迎您收聽「在澳大利亞的日子」。
In these new season of our bilingual series, Australian-Chinese migrants share their stories of settling in Australian and making their mark in our multicultural community.
在我們新的一季的雙語系列節目裡，澳大利亞的華裔移民為我們分享他們在澳大利亞定居並在我們多元文化社區留下他們足跡的故事。
Today’s story is:
My Mother-in-Law by Yuan Hrotek
Our readers are:
Hong Yan Ruan and Denise Kitching
今天分享的故事是:
《婆母，我頭頂上的祥雲》
作者： 陳苑苑
中文朗讀：阮虹豔
英文朗讀：Denise Kithing.
30年前我來到澳洲，第一次見我的婆母。
Thirty years ago, I came to Australia and met my mother-in-law for the first time.
10月的阿德萊德，春意漫漫，我跨出車門，站在街邊的草坪上，看見婆母走出房屋，佇立在門前迎侯。
Spring was everywhere in Adelaide that October. Stepping out of the car, I stood on the lawn beside the street and saw Paula coming out to welcome me.
我走向婆母。婆母既不端架子，也不顯親熱，更沒有歡呼。
I approached her. She was modest and unassuming, with no particular show of affection or cheer.
而當我到達她的面前時，婆母展開雙臂， 將我擁入她寬大的懷抱。那一刻， 我仿佛聽見婆母無聲的言語：我們等了你好久！
But when I was close to her, she opened her arms and gave me a bear hug, as if saying, 『We have been expecting you for quite some time!』
那個溫暖結實的擁抱，鋪開了我異國他鄉的人生安頓——從此，他鄉變故鄉。
That warm hug prepared me to settle down in a foreign country— which has since been my home.
我是帶著兒子來到這個家的。要說我對先生有幾多生生死死的愛戀，並不真實。而我最真實、最明確、最強烈的期望是: 我一定要把兒子送出去。但對我先生魯道夫，我有著全然的信任。
It would』ve been a lie if I had claimed to be madly in love with her son, my husband Rudolph, then. I had a clear goal: to take my son out of China. Still, I had complete trust in Rudolph.
最初，婆母和我最糟糕的問題是語言障礙，我說英文結結巴巴， 婆母說英文帶德語口音。
In the beginning, Paula and I had a serious language problem; I could hardly finish an English sentence without a stammer, and Paula spoke with strong German accent.
在魯道夫五歲時，婆母和她丈夫帶著一兒一女移民澳大利亞。當時二次大戰結束不久， 整個德國滿目瘡痍。
When Rudolph was five, she and her husband, who was of Czech descent, moved the family to Australia. It was not long after the end of WWII, and Germany was still in a state of devastation.
在初到澳大利亞時，找工作並非難事，可由於語言不通，他們只好到農莊裡去工作。
When they first came to Australia, it was not hard to find a job, but, as they did not speak the language, they had to work on a farm.
日出而作，日落而歸：大人在田間工作，小孩在田頭玩耍。法蘭克福的居民成了阿德雷德遠郊的農人。
A day’s work stretched from dawn to dusk: adults toiled in the field, while kids played nearby. The residents of Frankfurt became farmers in the outskirts of Adelaide.
白天田間工作完了後，晚上婆母去餐館打工，她丈夫則製作家具。
After working in the field during the day, Paula would take a night shift in a diner, while her husband was occupied with woodwork
到達澳洲僅僅兩年，他們就有了自己的房子。鄰居們無論是新移民還是當地人，都羨慕不已。
Two years after arrival in Australia, they had built their own house, which inspired envy among neighbors, locals and migrants alike.
然而，新建的房子卻是家徒四壁，因為還買不起床架，床墊只得鋪在地上。
However, the new house had nothing but bare walls. They had to lay the mattress on the floor because they could not afford any bedstead.
若干年後，他們買下一座葡萄園，悉心經營，辛勤勞作。待到退休時，他們已是兒孫滿堂。
After several years, they bought a vineyard, to which they devoted countless hours of painstaking management and hard work. They also raised two children and by the time they retired, they were surrounded by grandkids.
我和魯道夫有約，分居一事，不得讓老人知道。但一次婆母到我們家來，正巧撞見我從另一間臥室出來，分居敗露。
When eventually Rudolph and I separated, we kept it a secret from Paula. One day, however, Paula came to visit us and happened to bump into me coming out of another bedroom. Thus the separation came to light.
我深知，我們的分居，老人最為傷心。然而分居已成定局，我永遠感激Hortek一家對我們母子的恩義，我們也永遠是這個家的成員。
I knew she would be heartbroken, but the separation was already water under the bridge. But I would always be grateful to the Hortek family for their kindness to me and my son, and we would always be a part of this family.
婆母在83歲時丈夫病故，他們曾經相濡以沫63年。病重的丈夫不願住到冷冰冰醫院去，婆母承擔了照料丈夫的全部工作。
When Paula was 83, her husband died. They had supported each other for 63 years, so when her critically ill husband refused to live in a cold hospital, she was there for him to the end.
婆母在她先生去世後的三年，遭遇了魯道夫的病故。兒子的去世對老人是無可比擬的重擊，她的健康一落千丈。我一直不能想像，母親失去自己孩子是怎樣的慘痛，更何況是晚年失去了她日益依靠的兒子！
Three years later, Rudolph died of illness. It was such a shock that her health suffered a drastic decline. I have never been able to imagine the pain of a mother losing her child, let alone a mother who was growing old and dependent on her son.
魯道夫去世後，我每周去看望婆母。
After Rudolph’s death, I went to visit my mother-in-law every week.
我們常常淚眼相望，相擁而泣。
We often looked at each other with moist eyes, which brewed and developed into tears and hugs.
婆母會說，今天是魯道夫故去一個月了，三個月了……而後是一年了，三年了……我很少言語。提及魯道夫，於我總很艱難。
She would say, 『Rudolph has been gone for a month now』, 『It has been three months.』 Then one year. Then three years. I barely spoke. It was overwhelmingly hard for me to mention Rudolph.
一天，我同婆母擁吻告別，婆母難禁飲泣。我終於忍不住，伏在婆母肩頭。
One day, as I was kissing her goodbye, she broke into sobs. I could bear it no longer, so I cried on her shoulder
輕輕泣訴：「我好想他！」婆母好像驚了一下，繼而鉗住了自己的痛楚，竟來安慰我：「你也很悲傷」 ……
I said, 『I miss him so much!』 Seeming to be taken aback, she suppressed her sorrow and consoled me, 『You are sad too.』
婆母的住處距離我的有100 km之遙。一般是上午去，傍晚回。
Her residence was 100 km away from mine. Usually, I would go to her place in the morning and return at dusk.
中午同婆母一起吃飯，其實是婆母做給我吃。
We would have lunch together. She would cook. But it was not enough.
待到我走時，婆母總要給我一大堆的食物，主食、零食皆有。 主食夠我吃半周，零食則被置於一旁，永遠也吃不完。
Every time, she would prepare a lot of food for me to take home, staple food and snacks included. The staple food could last for half a week. As for the snacks, I had to keep them in the pantry as there was just too much.
終於，婆母在獨立居住的最後幾個月裡，體力腦力均已經不支，
Finally, in the last few months of her solitary life, she was both physically and mentally not up to it any more.
我開始帶午飯過去。
So I started to bring lunch over.
一次我做了一個土豆青椒絲炒榨菜，老人甚為喜歡。
Once I stir-fried shredded potatoes, green capsicum, and pickled vegetables together, which amazed her taste buds and won her heart.
德國人餐餐離不開土豆，但到哪裡去吃中國的炒土豆絲呢。
Germans eat potatoes every meal, but they seldom get the chance to savour shredded potatoes stir-fried Chinese style.
婆母今年9月起安居養老院。
Paula has been living in a nursing home since September 2018.
我去看望婆母，老人向我表示謝意。我說 「你照顧了我30年，」 正要說 「 現在應該是我來照顧你了 」還沒出口，老人說 「 我現在做不到了。」
I went to visit her and she thanked me. I said, 『You have been taking good care of me for 30 years –』 I was just about to say, 『now it’s my turn』, when she replied, 『I can’t anymore.』
我一無所有地帶著兒子走進婆家，我異族的婆母給予我的愛與關懷，理解與信任。
I came to my husband’s house with nothing but my son. My mother-in-law gave me not only love and care, but also understanding and trust.
我的婆母，是我頭頂的祥雲。
My mother-in-law was an auspicious cloud above my head.
『Days in Australia』 was by produced by PP Cranney, funded by Multicultural NSW and presented by 90.1 NBC FM for the Australia Chinese New Arts Society.
「在澳大利亞的日子」由PP克蘭尼公司製作，新南威爾斯州政府多元文化基金項目資助，90.1NBC FM 播出，澳洲新藝術聯合會出品。
If you would like more information about this project or Australia New Arts Society, email Jenny Gu at zhenggu@live.com.au
See you next time. Bye!
如果您希望了解有關此項目或澳洲新藝術聯合會的信息，請發送電子郵件至zhenggu@live.com.au
感謝您的收聽，我們下次節目見！
策劃：顧錚
製作：PP Cranney
播音：阮虹豔 Denise Kithing
文章：陳苑苑
編輯：唐培良
本節目是澳洲新藝術聯合會獲新州政府基金資助的項目「大地留印」活動之一，第一部分播送的是上一本書《歲月無痕》12篇有中英文雙語文章的節選，第二部分將從明年出版的《大地留印》書中選擇部分文章的節選。點擊「閱讀原文」你可以看到將收入在《大地留印》一書中的作者原文。
請於每周五晚上 6:30 鎖定90.1 NBC FM頻道收聽我們的節目：「在澳大利亞的日子」。https://onlineradiobox.com/au/2nbc/?cs=au.2nbc&played=1
澳洲新藝術聯合會是由一群居澳華裔文學家藝術家，文學藝術愛好者組成的非盈利性社會團體，旨在為在澳華裔文學家藝術家，文學藝術愛好者提供展示與交流平臺。 澳洲新藝術聯合會使用《Model Constitution》（Under the Association Incorporation Act 2009) 作為協會章程。章程要求每個入會者必須以書面形式（包括電子郵件等電子設備）向協會秘書提出申請，提交理事會核准，繳納年度會員費（每年$20) 後登記入冊，方能成為本協會會員。會員年度會費由繳納當天直至下一年是日，到第二年截止日後三個月內必須繳納下一年度會費，否則，視為自動退會。澳洲新藝術聯合會一如既往地歡迎新老朋友加入協會。
入會的聯繫方式：
電話：0406769889
電郵：tangpeiliang@hotmail.com
根據協會章程，澳洲新藝術聯合會於2020年9月17日召開了會員會議，選舉和確立了新的理事會成員和協會行政管理人員，公布了協會的財務帳目，確立了新的銀行帳戶籤名人，付費會員重新登記入會，原協會會員已經有一半以上完成了重新登記入會手續，此項工作還在陸續有序地展開。
新一屆理事會成員:
顧錚 陳志光 晁鐵軍 唐培良 高建平 陳璟
會長: 顧錚
副會長: 陳志光 晁鐵軍
秘書長: 唐培良
秘書: 陳璟
財務: Daniel Hu
********************************************
澳洲新藝術聯合會會員藝術展作品徵集通知：
澳洲新藝術聯合會將舉辦「新州議會大廈視界VISION+藝術展」，展覽詳情和如何參展請長按識別二維碼。
「大地留印」 活動由澳洲新藝術聯合會主辦，澳大利亞新南威爾斯州政府基金支持。
Funding for this "The Chinese Migration Stories in Print,Podcast&Image"has been provided by the NSW Government.
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