英语故事:一封迟来的情书,有情人未成眷属

"We loved one another from the first moment we met, though we did not speak of our love until the evening of my eighteenth birthday. All our friends and relatives had come to my party, and in the evening we danced on the big old carpet which we had laid down in the barn. Richard had come with the Van Rensburgs, and we danced together as often as we dared, which was not very often, for my father hated the Uitlanders. Indeed, for a time he had quarreled with Mynheer Van Rensburg for allowing Richard to board with him, but afterwards he got used to the idea, and was always polite to the Englishman, though he never liked him.

"我和理查德是一见钟情，尽管直到我18岁生日那天我们才表示彼此的爱慕之情。那天晚上的舞会上，我们的亲友都来了。我们在仓房里铺上一条宽大的旧毛毯，翩翩起舞。我和他壮起胆子频频起舞。但事实上，没有多少次，因为我的父亲很讨厌'洋人'。有一次，他曾抱怨说伦斯堡先生不应该让理查德寄住在他的家里，为此还跟他吵过一场，他后来就习以为常了。虽谈不上喜欢，但对这个英国人以礼相待。"那是我一生中最快乐的一个生日，因为理查德在跳舞间歇将我领到外面清凉的月光中，在点点繁星之下对我倾诉爱慕之情，并向我求婚。我二话没说答应了他的要求，因为我早已心醉神迷，想不到父母亲会说什么。我的心中除了理查德和他的爱情，什么也顾不上了。

 "That was the happiest birthday of my life, for while we were resting between dances Richard took me outside into the cool, moonlit night, and there, under the stars ,he told me he loved me and asked me to marry him. Of course I promised I would, for I was too happy to think of what my parents would say, or indeed of anything except Richard was not at our meeting place as he had arranged. I was disappointed but not alarmed, for so many things could happen to either of us to prevent out keeping our tryst. I thought that next time we visited the Van Ransburgs, I should hear what had kept him and we could plan further meetings…

"从那以后，我们就尽可能多地见面，但往往是秘密进行。我们就这样度过了将近1年时间。后来有一天，在他安排的约会处，理查德爽约没有来。失望之际，我没有大惊小怪，因为我们俩谁碰到形形色色的事都可能使我们无法幽会。我想我们以后去范·伦斯堡家看望之时，我就会明白理查德未能赴约的原因，再安排以后的约会……