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美国国家公共电台 NPR 'Only Child': A Story of Loss, Grief And Hope

时间:2018-02-22 08:17:42

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MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Four days ago, we received word about another one of those stories that we hate to report and you hate to hear - 17 people, many of them teenagers, were killed in a school shooting. And as journalists, I have to be honest with you, we often struggle to make sure that things don't seem mundane1, they don't become ordinary, things especially like this that should never happen to anybody despite the fact that this follows a familiar pattern. And we find ourselves trying to make sense of it.

And remarkably2, in this moment, there's a work of art that gives us insight. It's a novel. Just eight days before last week's tragic3 shooting in Florida, Rhiannon Navin released her debut4 novel "Only Child." It's a story about the aftermath of a school shooting told from the perspective of a 6-year-old who survived the shooting but his brother didn't. And Rhiannon Navin is with us now from our bureau in New York. Rhiannon, thank you so much for speaking with us.

RHIANNON NAVIN: It's an honor to be here. Thank you, Michel.

MARTIN: And, you know, it seems almost a ridiculous question, but I do have to ask, you know, what made you want to write this book?

NAVIN: Well, you know, it was a very kind of personal experience that I had a few years ago when my twins - when they just started kindergarten, they, you know, were 5 years old. They were sitting on their rug and deciphering their first words and just, you know, innocent and happy to be there. And then they experienced their first lockdown drill. And, you know, a voice comes on over the loudspeaker, it says lockdown. And their teacher locks the door, turns off the lights, ushers5 them into a closet or instructs them to hide under the desk.

And that same afternoon, I found my little guy, Garrett, hiding underneath6 our dining room table. And I said, you know, Buddy7, what are you doing under the table? And he said, I'm hiding from the bad guy, Mommy. And, you know, he cowered8 there. He refused to come out. So I got under the table with him and held him. And he was petrified9. And I was petrified. And that led me to wonder - what would that feel like or look like from the perspective of such a young child to have to live through an actual shooting and the aftermath, everything that comes afterwards?

MARTIN: Why a novel? I want to note that this is your first novel. This is actually the first thing you've ever published. But why a novel?

NAVIN: I had so many worries and fears that kind of came out of that experience. And I was desperate for an outlet10. And it was really for me. It was just for me. It was an exercise for me to sit down and deal with all my feelings and my worries. And before I knew it, I came out at the other end with a novel.

MARTIN: And I wanted to ask, if you wouldn't mind, reading the beginning of Chapter 7 - Sky Tears.

NAVIN: Absolutely.

(Reading) Andy was dead. That was the news Daddy told me when we stood in front of the hospital. It was raining still, so much rain all day long. The raindrops reminded me of all the tears, and it was like the sky was crying together with mommy inside the hospital and all the other people I saw crying today. Your brother was killed in the shooting, Zach, Daddy said, and his voice sounded very scratchy. We were standing11 together under the crying sky. In my head, the same words went round and round in a circle. Andy is dead, killed in the shooting. Andy is dead, killed in the shooting. Now I knew why Mommy acted crazy when Daddy came in because she knew Andy was dead, only I didn't know. Now I knew too, but I didn't start acting12 crazy. And I didn't cry and scream like Mommy. I just stood and waited with the same words doing circles in my head. And it was like my whole body didn't feel normal. It felt really heavy. Then Daddy said we should go back to check on Mommy. We went back inside slow, and my heavy legs made it hard to walk. The people in the waiting room stared at us, and their faces looked like they were feeling very sorry for us. So they knew Andy was dead, too.

MARTIN: Rhiannon, it's, you know, it's a hard read. And I have to be honest with you that it was, in a way, hard to get through because every couple of pages, you know, my eyes would fill with tears. And one of the things I think that stands out for me is that these people are not, you know, all perfect people. You know, they are not angelic people. And I just wondered how you came to that idea that these were the people who you would want to tell this story through.

NAVIN: I wanted to show an average family. You know, being married is, under the best of circumstances, difficult. Having children under the best of circumstances is difficult. And then you take this average family that deals with all the normal things and toss them into a situation where they kind of have to face the most unspeakable, horrifying13 tragedy for their family, and they are going to act like humans. And they're going to make mistakes. And their grief is going to make them do things that they wouldn't want to do, but they're grieving. And they're terrified. And sometimes they're lashing14 out.

MARTIN: In art, just as in journalism15, sometimes there's a line between observing something and being felt to be exploiting it. And I wondered if you considered that in any way that you might be exploiting something that you have not, thankfully, had to experience yourself.

NAVIN: You know, I - especially, obviously, in the last few days, that's been very much at the top of my mind. You know, when I wrote this story, I had the hope that by telling the story, I could share my journey with other parents who have the same kind of fears and worries that I have. But of course I am very sensitive to the fact that it could be seen as me trying to exploit, you know, a tragedy. But I feel this incredible sense of urgency that I want to be helpful to hopefully change.

MARTIN: And to that end, that was going to be my question. What do you think you learned as a result of taking yourself on this journey? Is there something that you would hope people would draw from this?

NAVIN: I hope that the story that I told and that the perspective that I chose will remind all of us - I know it reminded me tremendously - of kind of the emotional depth and wisdom that our children and our young people possess and that they have to share if we take the time to listen. And I hope that after my readers grieve with Zach and his family that they come out at the other end and that they feel hope and that they discover that there is a chance that we can heal together and move forward and create a safer future for our children. And I think it really begins with our children, that we take the time to listen, hear their voices, have them help guide us and support them - that we come together and we support our children.

MARTIN: Rhiannon Navin is speaking to us from NPR studios in New York. Her debut novel "Only Child" came out on February 6. Rhiannon Navin, thank you so much for speaking with us.

NAVIN: Thank you so much for having me.

(SOUNDBITE OF TULPA'S "THE BIRDS AND BEES")


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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 mundane F6NzJ     
adj.平凡的;尘世的;宇宙的
参考例句:
  • I hope I can get an interesting job and not something mundane.我希望我可以得到的是一份有趣的工作,而不是一份平凡无奇的。
  • I find it humorous sometimes that even the most mundane occurrences can have an impact on our awareness.我发现生活有时挺诙谐的,即使是最平凡的事情也能影响我们的感知。
2 remarkably EkPzTW     
ad.不同寻常地,相当地
参考例句:
  • I thought she was remarkably restrained in the circumstances. 我认为她在那种情况下非常克制。
  • He made a remarkably swift recovery. 他康复得相当快。
3 tragic inaw2     
adj.悲剧的,悲剧性的,悲惨的
参考例句:
  • The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
  • Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。
4 debut IxGxy     
n.首次演出,初次露面
参考例句:
  • That same year he made his Broadway debut, playing a suave radio journalist.在那同一年里,他初次在百老汇登台,扮演一个温文而雅的电台记者。
  • The actress made her debut in the new comedy.这位演员在那出新喜剧中首次登台演出。
5 ushers 4d39dce0f047e8d64962e1a6e93054d1     
n.引座员( usher的名词复数 );招待员;门房;助理教员v.引,领,陪同( usher的第三人称单数 )
参考例句:
  • Seats clicked, ushers bowed while he looked blandly on. 座位发出啪啦啪啦的声响,领座员朝客人们鞠躬,而他在一边温和殷勤地看着。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
  • The minister then offers a brief prayer of dedication, and the ushers return to their seats. 于是牧师又做了一个简短的奉献的祈祷,各招待员也各自回座位。 来自辞典例句
6 underneath VKRz2     
adj.在...下面,在...底下;adv.在下面
参考例句:
  • Working underneath the car is always a messy job.在汽车底下工作是件脏活。
  • She wore a coat with a dress underneath.她穿着一件大衣,里面套着一条连衣裙。
7 buddy 3xGz0E     
n.(美口)密友,伙伴
参考例句:
  • Calm down,buddy.What's the trouble?压压气,老兄。有什么麻烦吗?
  • Get out of my way,buddy!别挡道了,你这家伙!
8 cowered 4916dbf7ce78e68601f216157e090999     
v.畏缩,抖缩( cower的过去式 )
参考例句:
  • A gun went off and people cowered behind walls and under tables. 一声枪响,人们缩到墙后或桌子底下躲起来。
  • He cowered in the corner, gibbering with terror. 他蜷缩在角落里,吓得语无伦次。
9 petrified 2e51222789ae4ecee6134eb89ed9998d     
adj.惊呆的;目瞪口呆的v.使吓呆,使惊呆;变僵硬;使石化(petrify的过去式和过去分词)
参考例句:
  • I'm petrified of snakes. 我特别怕蛇。
  • The poor child was petrified with fear. 这可怜的孩子被吓呆了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
10 outlet ZJFxG     
n.出口/路;销路;批发商店;通风口;发泄
参考例句:
  • The outlet of a water pipe was blocked.水管的出水口堵住了。
  • Running is a good outlet for his energy.跑步是他发泄过剩精力的好方法。
11 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
参考例句:
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
12 acting czRzoc     
n.演戏,行为,假装;adj.代理的,临时的,演出用的
参考例句:
  • Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她,她只是假装的。
  • During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代,她的表演生涯黯然失色。
13 horrifying 6rezZ3     
a.令人震惊的,使人毛骨悚然的
参考例句:
  • He went to great pains to show how horrifying the war was. 他极力指出战争是多么的恐怖。
  • The possibility of war is too horrifying to contemplate. 战争的可能性太可怕了,真不堪细想。
14 lashing 97a95b88746153568e8a70177bc9108e     
n.鞭打;痛斥;大量;许多v.鞭打( lash的现在分词 );煽动;紧系;怒斥
参考例句:
  • The speaker was lashing the crowd. 演讲人正在煽动人群。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The rain was lashing the windows. 雨急打着窗子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
15 journalism kpZzu8     
n.新闻工作,报业
参考例句:
  • He's a teacher but he does some journalism on the side.他是教师,可还兼职做一些新闻工作。
  • He had an aptitude for journalism.他有从事新闻工作的才能。

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