Anonymous
I saw a most unusual woman today,traveling into Manhattan on the commuter railroad.I stood near her and her three children,two boys and a girl,all of us jostled about as the train rushed into the city.Where she boarded,I cannot be sure;judging from her style and the quality of her clothes,I'd guess she came from one of the more prosperous Long Island villages.
The kids were between three and eight years old.A dirty-blonde-haired girl,a bright cutie,was the youngest.The boys,outfitted in heavy winter coats and coordinated baseball caps,were sound in looks and personality.The mother was a pale,pleasant looking,slender woman about five feet six inches tall,with a not quite heart-shaped face.She had to be less than 40.Her black hair was cut to mid-neck,and her moderately thick eyebrows arched over gray-blue eyes.She was dressed for the sleety winter weather in a heavy gray wool coat,blue jeans,anddark brown hiking boats.
What made this woman stand out from other attractive women was her relationship with her children.She casually interacted with them in the most supportive manner during the more than half-hour they were standing.Affection was plentifully supplied through a series of well-distributed touches and ready smiles.She held a cup of coffee in her hands,and the kids,too,gripped beverages,along with the remnants of a light Pop Tart breakfast.Breakfasting in a railroad car was evidently part of the day's adventure and was timed to keep the kids occupied on what could otherwise have been a boring trip.
Readers may be curious about the emotional inspiration for the sketch I have limned above.My purpose was to share a moment of the aesthetic pleasure in everyday life and to provide a reminder that life's rewards can be found in its routines.The work of living had traced a mark on the woman's face.Its public representation was the crease line that ran down her lower cheek and under her jaw,which showed promise of turning into the boundary of a jowl or extra chin in later years.The power of this marking can be measured by my response to it;for,in a culture that finds sign of wear repellent,I was attracted.
The stamp of age served as a natural frame for a found piece of performance art,one that might be called"Love Enhances Human Beauty."Her essence radiated competent motherly love,and I was spiritually and emotionally moved by it.It was a delight to see someone who evidently lived life to love and be loved.This woman,this mother,and(judging from her wedding ring)this wife knew life's wear and tear,and she appeared to accept it as part of a fair deal in return for the joy of living.
列车上的女士
佚名
今天，在驶往曼哈顿的列车上我见到了一位与众不同的女士。她带着三个孩子，两个男孩一个女孩，我就站在他们旁边。当列车高速行进的时候，我们都挤在了一起。我不清楚她在哪一站上车的，不过从她的打扮和衣服的材质来看，我估计她从长岛那些富庶的村庄过来。
那几个小孩的年龄介于三到八岁之间。他们中年纪最小的是那个女孩，一头金黄的头发带点儿灰褐色，俨然一个聪明的鬼精灵。那两个男孩穿着厚重的冬大衣，戴着配套的棒球帽，长相和心智都显得很健康。他们的妈妈白皙，漂亮，身材苗条，身高大约五英尺六英寸，脸形不太像心形。她肯定不到四十岁。她乌黑的长发落到脖子处，粗粗的睫毛下有一双灰蓝色的眼睛。为了应对冬天雨雪交杂的天气，她身上穿着厚厚的灰羊毛大衣，蓝色牛仔裤和深褐色的登山靴。
她和孩子们的关系让她显得与众不同。在车厢里的半个多小时中，她以一种随和、鼓励的态度和几个孩子交流着。在对几个孩子没有偏心的爱抚和灿烂的微笑间充盈的是深深的感情。她的手中握着一杯咖啡，孩子的手里也拿着饮料和一小块吃剩的上面有果酱的小圆饼。显然，在列车上吃早餐是他们每天生活的一部分，这样的时间安排也让孩子们在一趟乏味的旅程中有事可做。
读者也许会好奇，也许想知道我以上这段简短的描述背后的情感动机。其实我只想与读者分享平常生活中一个愉快而富有美感的瞬间，以此启示大家在日复一日的生活琐事中有生活对你的回报。岁月在那位女士的脸上留下了痕迹。这些痕迹很明显地体现在她的法令纹上，那条法令纹一直延伸到下颔，相信用不了几年就会变成一条深深的双下巴颈纹。从我的反应便可知道这种痕迹的力量不可低估。在这样一个推崇年轻漂亮的时代，我却被这位女士深深吸引。
岁月在女士身上留下的烙印为我妙手偶得的这件表演视觉艺术作品提供了一个自然的框架，我就姑且将这件作品称为“爱使人美丽”吧。从她体内焕发出的那种炽烈难当的母性的爱，让我的灵魂和情感为之震憾。看到活生生的爱与被爱，是一件十足的赏心乐事。这位女士，母亲和妻子（从她手上的结婚戒指而知）体会到了生活的磨耗，然后她坦然地接受了，并把生活的苦兑换成生活的乐视为一种公平的交易。
感悟母性的爱，让灵魂为之动容。