My dearest Christoph, I arrived
home last night to find your letter
on the table in the hall.
我亲爱的Christoph:昨晚回到家,才在客厅的桌子上看见你的来信。
Do I remember you? Of course, I
do!
我记得你么?我当然记得你呀!
And I'm so sorry you're finding
these months so difficult.
这些日子你过得不好,我感到很难过。
I should tell you I have received a
letter from your mother as well.
我必须告诉你我也收到你妈妈的来信。
As you know, she is worried about you and wants you to be happy.
你是知道的,她很担心你,希望你能过得幸福。
She assures me that Mr.
Beethoven is peculiar perhaps,
but certainly not mad.
她向我保证也许贝多芬先生只是有点奇怪,但是她很确信他没有疯。
Christoph, Mr. Beethoven will
settle in soon I'm sure.
Christoph,我相信贝多芬先生很快就要迁入了。
I know that life will be more
peaceful before long.
我确信不久后的生活就会安详许多。
Dear Uncle, Now everyone on the
street is laughing at us.
亲爱的叔叔,现在街上的所有人都在嘲笑我们。
I opened the front door this
morning to find a crowd in front of our house.
一天早上我打开前门,看见一群人聚在我家前面。
They were looking up at Mr.
Beethoven's window and
laughing so I looked up too.
他们都一边笑着,一边向上看着贝多芬先生房间的窗户。所以我也抬头往上看。
There was Mr. Beethoven. He was at the window, looking at a sheet of music.
贝多芬先生在那儿。他站在窗边,一边看着乐谱。
Uncle, he had no clothes on at all!It was a dreadful sight!
叔叔,他什么衣服都没有穿!那场景可怕极了!
Sometimes people stop outside
our house, thinking they will see
Mr. Beethoven.
有时候人们会在我家房前停下,以为能够看到贝多芬先生。
But if anyone asks, I say that he
has moved away.
但是如果有人问起,我就说他已经搬走了。
Dear Uncle, Mr. Beethoven has a
friend named Mr. Schindler, who
visits almost every day.
亲爱的叔叔,贝多芬先生有一位叫
Schindler先生的朋友。他几乎每天都来看望贝多芬先生。
He always says, "Poor Mr.
Beethoven. He is a lonely man."
他总是说“可怜的贝多芬。他是一个孤独的人。”
You know that Mr. Beethoven is
deaf.
你知道贝多芬先生听不见了。
When he has visitors, they write
what they want to say in a book.
当有客人时,他们就会在书上写想要说的话。
He reads their message and
answers them out loud.
他读着说话内容,并且大声地回答出来。
He has a low and fuzzy voice.
他的声音很低沉,含糊不清。
Mr. Beethoven's eyes are weak as
well.
贝多芬先生的眼睛也不好了。
When he works too long by
candlelight his eyes begin to
ache.
当他长时间在烛光下工作时,他的眼睛就会疼起来。
He sometimes sits alone with a
cloth wrapped around his head to
keep out the light.
他有时候独自坐着,用一块布包裹着头遮挡光线。
He sits there, not seeing and not
hearing in his chair.
就坐在椅子上,什么也看不见,什么也听不见。
He's in a world by himself, Uncle.
他沉浸在自己的世界中,叔叔。
There is no hour of the day when I forget that Mr. Beethoven is in the house.
一天之中很难得有这样的时候,当我忘却了贝多芬先生还待在房子里。
Dear Uncle, One week has
passed since I last wrote you, but
life is no calmer here.
亲爱的叔叔,距上次给您写信已经过去一个星期了。这里的生活却没有多一丝的宁静。
At lunch time today, Mr.
Beethoven's housekeeper came
plunging down the stairs.
在今天的午餐时间,贝多芬先生的女管家急匆匆地冲下楼梯。
She had her hat crushed in her
hand and her face was covered
with tears.
她手里的帽子拽成一团,她的脸上挂满了泪珠。
Mr. Beethoven had told her she is
fired. She had used a page of Mr.
Beethoven's music to stuff his
boots.
刚刚贝多芬先生告诉她她被解雇了,因为她用了贝多芬先生的一张乐谱来塞他的靴子。
I think of all the places in the
house I like the outside best.
家里所有的地方,我最喜欢房子外面。
I can be alone there and get away from all the noise inside.
在那里我可以一个人,远离房子里的噪音。
But on this day, even the stray
dog outside was making his pitiful voice be heard.
但是今天,连房子外面流浪狗可怜巴巴的叫声都能听的见。