英文中譯： 太太的至愛

一位風燭殘年的老人倦卧在床上等待著死神的降臨。冥冥中他突然嗅覺到從樓下飄上來一股久別的烘焙香味―――他由衷喜愛的巧克力餅乾。

老人竭盡餘力從床上爬起來，依扶著牆壁緩慢地挪出卧室；雙手緊握樓梯的扶手，掙扎著走下階梯。老人倚靠在門框上，不停地喘氣，目不轉睛凝視著廚房。若不是病痛的折磨，他似乎覺得他已進入了天堂。

廚房的餐桌上鋪墊著一層報紙，報紙上堆滿了他由衷喜愛的巧克力餅乾！

天堂不過如此吧？ 難道這是他終身為伴的太太表達她至愛的最終舉動？希望他能笑別塵世？

用盡平生最後一把力氣撲向餐桌，用他那布滿青筋不斷顫抖的手伸向桌上的巧克力餅乾。就在抓住餅乾的那一霎那，他太太用鍋鏟狠狠地抽打在他的手上：

「別亂動，這些都是為葬禮而預備的」。

A very old man lay dying in his bed. In death's doorway, he suddenly smelled the aroma of his favorite chocolate chip cookie wafting up the stairs.

He gathered his remaining strength and lifted himself from the bed. Leaning against the wall, he slowly made his way out of the bedroom, and with even greater effort forced himself down the stairs, gripping the railing with both hands.

With labored breath, he leaned against the door frame, gazing into the kitchen. Were it not for death's agony, he would have thought himself already in heaven.

There, spread out up on newspapers on the kitchen table were literally hundreds of his favorite chocolate chip cookies.

Was this heaven, or was it one final act of heroic love from his devoted wife, seeing to it that he left this world a happy man?

Mustering one great final effort, he threw himself toward the table.. The aged and withered hand, shaking, made its way to a cookie at the edge of the table, when he was suddenly smacked with a spatula by his wife.

"Stay out of those," she said. "They're for the funeral."