Sometimes I really doubt whether there is love between my parents. Every day they are very busy trying to earn money in order to pay the high tuition1 for my brother and me. They don't act in the romantic ways that I read in books or see on TV. In their opinion, “I love you” is too luxurious2 for them to say. Sending flowers to each other on Valentine's Day is even more out of the question3. Finally my father has a bad temper. When he's very tired from the hard work, it is easy for him to lose his temper. One day, my mother was sewing a quilt4. I silently sat down beside her and looked at her.
“Mom, I have a question to ask you,” I said after a while.
“What?” she replied, still doing her work.
“Is there love between you and Dad?” I asked her in a very low voice.
My mother stopped her work and raised her head with surprise in her eyes. She didn't answer immediately. Then she bowed her head and continued to sew the quilt.
I was very worried because I thought I had hurt her. I was in a great embarrassment5 and I didn't know what I should do. But at last I heard my mother say the following words:
“Susan,” she said thoughtfully6, “Look at this thread. Sometimes it appears, but most of it disappears in the quilt. The thread really makes the quilt strong and durable7. If life is a quilt, then love should be a thread. It can hardly be seen anywhere or anytime, but it's really there. Love is inside.”
I listened carefully but I couldn't understand her until the next spring. At that time, my father suddenly got sick seriously. My mother had to stay with him in the hospital for a month. When they returned from the hospital, they both looked very pale. It seemed both of them had had a serious illness.
After they were back, every day in the morning and dusk, my mother helped my father walk slowly on the country road. My father had never been so gentle. It seemed they were the most harmonious8 couple. Along the country road, there were many beautiful flowers, green grass and trees. The sun gently glistened9 through the leaves. All of these made up the most beautiful picture in the world.
The doctor had said my father would recover in two months. But after two months he still couldn't walk by himself. All of us were worried about him.
“Dad, how are you feeling now?” I asked him one day.
“Susan, don't worry about me.” he said gently. “To tell you the truth, I just like walking with your mom. I like this kind of life.” Reading his eyes, I know he loves my mother deeply.
Once I thought love meant flowers, gifts and sweet kisses. But from this experience, I understand that love is just a thread in the quilt of our life. Love is inside, making life strong and warm...
有时候，我真怀疑父母之间是否有真爱。他们天天忙着挣钱，为我和弟弟支付学费。他们从未有我在书中读到或电视里看到的那种浪漫。他们认为“我爱你”太奢侈，很难说出口。情人节送花更是无法想象的事。还有，我父亲的脾气很坏，一天的劳累之后，疲惫不堪的他经常发脾气。 一天，母亲正在缝被子，我静静地坐在她旁边看着她。
过了一会，我说：“妈妈，我想问你一个问题。”
“什么？”她一边忙着手中的活，一边问道。
我低声地问：“你和爸爸之间有没有爱情啊？”
母亲停下了手中的活，满眼诧异地抬起头。她没有马上回答，然后又低下头，继续缝被子。
我很不安，因为觉得自己伤害了她。我非常尴尬，手足无措。最后，我听见母亲说了下面的话。
“苏珊，”母亲若有所思地说道，“看看这根线，有时候，它露在外面；但大都藏在被子里，这些线让被子结实耐用。如果生活就是一床被子，那么爱就是一根线。你不可能随时随地看到它，但是它却实实在在存在着。爱埋在心里。”
我仔细地听着，却无法理解她的话，直到第二年的春天。那时候，父亲突然得了重病。母亲在医院里待了一个月陪他。从医院回来的时候，俩人都是面色苍白，就像他俩同时得了一场重病。
他们回来之后，每天清晨和黄昏，母亲都会搀扶着父亲在乡村小路上漫步。父亲从未如此温和过。他们看上去是最和谐融洽的夫妻。在小路旁边，有许多美丽的野花、绿草和树木。阳光穿过树叶的缝隙，温柔地照射在地面上。这一切构成了一幅世间最美好的图画。
医生说父亲两个月后就会康复。但是两个月之后，他仍然无法独立行走。我们都很为他担心。
有一天，我问他：“爸爸，你感觉怎么样？”
他温和地说：“苏珊，不用为我担心。实话跟你说吧，我喜欢跟你妈妈一块散步的感觉。我喜欢这种生活。”从他的眼神里，我懂得了他对母亲的深爱。
我曾经认为爱情就是鲜花、礼物和热吻。但是有了这种经历，我明白了，爱情就像是我们被子里的一根线。爱深藏不露，使生命变得坚固而温暖……
1． tuition n． 学费
2． luxurious adj． 奢侈的
3． out of the question 不可能
4． quilt [kwilt] n． 被子
5． embarrassment n． 尴尬
6． thoughtfully adv． 若有所思地
7． durable adj． 耐用
8． harmonious adj． 和睦的
9． glisten v． 闪光