我想分享＜The Last Lecture＞作者Dr. Randy Pausch的其中一段内容（我翻譯自英文）﹕
‘…我姐姐的两個孩子，…那時Chris七歲和Laura九歲，我駕着嶄新的Volkswagen Cabrio折篷車去載他們。“小心Randy叔叔的新車，” 我的姐姐告诉他们。“上車前擦擦腳。不要弄亂任何東西。不要弄肮脏它。”
我聽了她說的話后，像單身叔叔的我只是如此想﹕“那只會令孩子失敗的一類訓誡。當然他們最終會弄肮脏我的車。孩子不能帮上忙。” 所以我將事情簡單化。我姐姐講了規則后，我故意及慢慢的打開一罐汽水，倒轉它，將它倒在我折篷車的布織后座上。我的信息是﹕人比較重要過物件。一輛車，即使我的新折篷車像珍寶般，它只是一個物件。
當我倒了那可樂，我看到Chris 和Laura開着咀，眼睛張大。這疯狂的Randy叔叔完全不理大人的規則。
我最終還是高興我倒出那汽水。因為之后的一個週末，小Chris得了感冒及嘔吐在后座上。他很放鬆﹔他已見我洗礼過車。他知道那是OK的。…’
我讀了此段，回想起很多年前，還小的侄兒、侄女弄斷我的胭脂及其它等，我很生氣，害他們被他們的母親打罵。我不知道我的侄兒、侄女是否還記得，總之我是很過意不去，趁此向他們說sorry。
I would like to share some of the contents from ‘The Last Lecture’ by Dr. Randy Pausch:
‘…my sister’s two children, …when Chris was seven years old and Laura was nine, I picked them up in my brand-new Volkswagen Cabrio convertible. “Be careful in Uncle Randy’s new car,” my sister told them. “Wipe your feet before you get in it. Don’t mess anything up. Don’t get it dirty.”
‘I listened to her, and thought, as only a bachelor uncle can: “That’s just the sort of admonition that sets kids up for failure. Of course they’d eventually get my car dirty. Kids can’t help it.” So I made things easy. While my sister was outlining the rules, I slowly and deliberately opened a can of soda, turned it over, and poured it on the cloth seats in the back of the convertible. My message: People are more important than things. A car, even a pristine gem like my new convertible, was just a thing.
‘As I poured out that Coke, I watched Chris and Laura, mouths open, eyes widening. Here was crazy Uncle Randy completely rejecting adult rules.
‘I ended up being so glad I’d spilled that soda. Because later in the weekend, little Chris got the flu and threw up all over the backseat. He didn’t feel guilty. He was relieved; he had already watched me christen the car. He knew it would be OK. …’
After I read that, I remembered many years ago, when my niece and nephew were kids they messed up my lipstick and some other things. I was so mad and in the end they were scolded or hit by their mom. I am not sure if my niece and nephew still remember it, but I felt guilty. As I share the above, I also want to say sorry to them.
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