In marriage， there is no scorecard. You do little things for each other to make the others life easier.
Marriage Dont Need Scorecard
As the movie came to an end the room filled with chatter. The warm fire， twinkling Christmas lights and laughter from family brought a contentedcontented adj.满足的， 心安的 smile to my face. The minute Mom said， “Who wants…”the room emptied quicker than the stands at a losing football game.
在婚姻生活当中，是不需要记分卡的。夫妻两人各自为对方做一些力所能及的事可以让彼此的生活更加舒适从容。
为爱加油
电影放完以后，大家开始海阔天空地闲聊起来。望着温暖的炉火和闪烁的圣诞彩灯，听着家人的欢声笑语，我惬意地微笑着。这时，妈妈突然说：“你们有谁想……”她的话音未落，房间里立刻变得空空荡荡的，简直比输了足球比赛时的体育场看台空得还快。
My boyfriend Todd and I were the only ones left. With a bewildered look on his face he asked me what just happened. Catching the laughter on my moms face， I said to Todd，“ We are going to go put gas in my moms car.”
He quickly replied， “Its freezing out there， and its almost 11：30 P.M.” Smiling， I said， “ Then you had better your coat and glovesglove n.手套vt.戴手套 .”
After hurriedly chipping the frost off the windshieldwindshield n.挡风玻璃 ， we bundled into the car. On the way to the gas station， Todd asked me to explain why in the world we were going to get my mom gas so late at night. Chuckling， I said， “When my siblingssibling n.兄弟， 姐妹， 同胞， 同属 and I come home for the holidays， we help my dad get gas for my mom. It has turned into a game with all of us. We can tell when my mom is going to ask and the last one in the room has to go.”
房间里只剩下了我和我的男友托德。他满脸疑惑地问我刚才怎么回事。望着妈妈脸上的笑容，我对托德说：“我们应该去为妈妈的汽车加油了。”
他马上惊叫起来：“现在屋外天寒地冻，并且都已经是夜里十一点半了啊！”我笑着说：“那你最好是穿上外套，戴上手套吧。”
我们利索地刮掉汽车挡风玻璃上的冻霜，然后就迅速地钻进了汽车里。在开往加油站的路上，托德好奇地询问，这么晚了，我们还要去给妈妈的汽车加油，到底是因为什么呢？我吃吃地的笑着说：“每当我和兄弟姐妹们回家过节时，我们都要替爸爸为妈妈的汽车加油。后来这就变成了我们之间的一个游戏。其实，我们都知道妈妈会在什么时间问我们，但最后还待在房间里的那个人，就必须要去给妈妈的汽车加油了。”
“You have got to be kidding me！” Todd responded.
“There is no getting out of it，” I said.
While pumping the gas， we clappedclap v.鼓掌， 轻拍 our hands and jumped around to stay warm. “I still dont get it. Why doesnt your mom put the gas in the car herself？” Todd asked.
With mirth in my eyes， I said，“ I know it sounds insaneinsane adj. 极愚蠢的， 患精神病的， 精神病患者的 ， but let me explain. My mom has not pumped gas in over two decades. My dad always pumps gas for her.”
With a confusedconfused adj.困惑的， 烦恼的 look， Todd asked if my dad was ever annoyed with having to pump gas for his wife all the time. Shaking my head， I simply said，“ No， he has never complained.”
“Thats crazy，” Todd quickly replied.
“你不会是在欺骗我吧？”托德问道。
“真的，我没骗你。”我说。
在给汽车加油时，我们俩揉搓着手，不停地蹦跳着取暖。“我还是不明白，为什么你妈妈自己不来加油呢？”托德追问。
我笑着说：“我知道这听上去确实有点儿令人费解，但是听过我的解释你就会明白了。我妈妈自己不去加油已经有二十年了。这二十年来，一直都是我爸爸在给她的汽车加油。”
托德疑惑地看着我问道，我爸爸是否对总要去为妈妈的汽车加油感到厌烦了呢？我连忙摇头，简短地说：“没有，他从没有埋怨过。”
“哦，那真是让人不可思议！”托德很快回答说。
“No， not really，” I explained patiently. “When I came home for the holidays my sophomoresophomore n.大学二年级生， 有二年经验的人 year of college， I thought I knew everything. I was on this big female independence kick. One evening， my mom and I were wrapping presents， and I told her that when I got married， my husband was going to help clean， do laundry， cook， the whole bit. Then I asked her if she ever got tired of doing the laundry and dishes. She calmly told me it did not bother her. This was difficult for me to believe. I began to give her a lecture about this being the 90s， and equality between the sexes.
“Mom listened patiently. Then after setting the ribbonribbon n.缎带， 丝带， 带， 带状物， 带子 aside， she looked me square in the eyes. ‘Someday， dear， you will understand.’
“This only irritated me more. I didnt understand one bit. And so I demanded more of an explanation. Mom smiled， and began to explain：
“不，确实如此，”我耐心地向他解释，“记得在我大学二年级那年回家度假的时候，我自以为已经无所不晓了，尤其是对于男女不平等的现象可以说是深恶痛绝。有一天晚上，我和妈妈正在包裹礼物，我对妈妈说，将来我结婚后，一定要让我的丈夫帮着做家务，什么打扫卫生啦、熨洗衣物啦、做饭啦等等。接着，我问妈妈是否对整日洗熨衣物、刷锅洗碗等感到厌烦，她却平静地回答我说她从来都没感到过厌倦。这简直让我难以置信。于是，我开始向她大谈特谈什么现在已是20世纪90年代了，什么两性平等啦等等。
“妈妈耐心地听我夸夸其谈。在礼物的包裹上系上丝带，然后她凝视着我的眼睛说：‘亲爱的，将来你会懂得的。’
“这让我十分生气。我一点儿也不明白！于是，我要求妈妈为我做进一步解释。妈妈笑着解释道：
“‘In a marriage， there are some things you like to do and some things you dont. So， together， you figure outfigure out v.合计为， 计算出， 解决， 断定， 领会到 what little things you are willing to do for each other. You share the responsibilities. I really dont mind doing the laundry. On the other hand， I do not like to pump gas. The smell of the fumesfume n.(浓烈或难闻的)烟， 气体， 一阵愤怒(或不安) bothers me. And I dont like to stand out in the freezing cold. So， your dad always puts gas in my car. Your dad grocery shops， and I cook. Your dad mows the grass， and I clean. I could go on and on.’
“‘You see，’ my mother continued， ‘in marriage， there is no scorecard. You do little things for each other to make the others life easier. If you think of it as helping the person you love， you dont become annoyed with doing the laundry or cooking， or any task， because youre doing it out of love.’
“‘在婚姻生活中，总有一些事是你喜欢做，有一些是你不喜欢做的。因此夫妻之间一定要相互交流，看看有哪些事是你愿意为对方做的。此外，夫妻两人要共同分担责任。我确实从未在意过洗熨衣物等家务事。反过来说，我不喜欢去为汽车加油，那种难闻的味道着实让我难以忍受，而且我也讨厌站在寒冷的车外等着加油。所以，总是你爸爸去给我的汽车加油。还有，你爸爸负责去杂货店里买东西，我负责做饭；你爸爸负责割杂草，而我就负责清理。当然，还有许多这样的事情。’
“‘你知道吗？’妈妈继续意味深长地说，‘在婚姻生活当中，是不需要记分卡的。夫妻两人各自为对方做了一些力所能及的事可以让彼此的生活更加舒适从容。只要你想到这是帮你的爱人做的，你就不会太在意这些洗熨衣物、烧菜做饭等等家务事，或是其他的一些事情，因为你这么做全部是因为爱啊！’
“Over the years， I have often reflected on what my mom said. She has a great perspective on marriage. I like how my mom and dad take care of each other. And you know what？ One day， when Im married， I dont want to have a scorecard either.”
Todd was unusually quiet the rest of the way home. After he shut off the engine， he turned to me and took my hands in his with a warm smile and a twinkle in his eye.
“Anytime you want，” he said in a soft voice， “ Ill pump gas for you.”
“这么多年以来，我一直都在思索妈妈说过的那些话。关于婚姻生活，她的观点确实很有意义。我喜欢父母的这种相互关怀，相互照顾的方式。你知道吗，托德，将来我结婚以后，我也不想在夫妻之间存在什么记分卡？”
在回家的路上，托德显得非同寻常地安静。回到家后，托德关掉了发动机，转身握住我的双手，他的脸上洋溢着温柔的笑容，眼睛里闪烁着激动的光彩。
“无论何时只要你乐意，”他温柔地说，“我愿永远为你加油！”
婚姻是爱情的坟墓吗？文中的妈妈对此有着很好的诠释：在婚姻生活中，总有些事情是你喜欢做的，有些是你不喜欢做的。因此，夫妻二人一定要互相交流，要共同分担责任。因为你这么做完全是因为爱啊！夫妻间应该是彼此坦诚相待，默默给予对方自己的爱，这样的爱也许一时看不见，但终究会发出耀眼的光芒，照亮婚姻的殿堂。
