Well，all she had was a flat tire，but for an old lady，that was bad enough. Bryan crawledunder the car looking for a place to put the jack，skinning his fingers a time or two. Soon hewas able to change the tire. As he was tightening up the lug nuts，she rolled down the windowand began to talk to him. She told him thatshe was from St. Louis and was only justpassing through. She couldn’t thank himenough for coming to her aid.
Bryan just smiled as he closed hertrunk. The lady asked how much she owedhim. Bryan never thought twice about beingpaid. This was not a job to him. This washelping someone in need.
He told her that if she really wantedto pay him back，the next time she sawsomeone who needed help，she could givethat person the assistance they needed，andBryan added，“And think of me.”
He waited until she started her car anddrove off. It had been a cold and depressingday，but he felt good as he headed for home，disappearing into the twilight.
A few miles down the road the lady sawa small cafe. She went in to grab a bite toeat，and take the chill off before she madethe last leg of her trip home. The waitresscame over and brought a clean towel to wipeher wet hair. She had a sweet smile，onethat even being on her feet for the wholeday couldn’t erase. The lady noticed thewaitress was nearly eight months pregnant，but she never let the strain and aches changeher attitude. The old lady wondered howsomeone who had so little could be so givingto a stranger. Then she remembered.
After the lady finished her meal，shepaid with a 100 bill. The waitress quicklywent to get change for her hundred dollarbill，but the old lady had slipped right out thedoor. She was gone by the time the waitresscame back. Then she noticed somethingwritten on the napkin. There were tears inher eyes when she read what the lady wrote：
“You don’t owe me anything. I have been theretoo. Somebody once helped me out，the way I’mhelping you. If you really want to pay me back，here is what you do： Do not let this chain of loveend with you.” Under the napkin were four more100 bills.
That night when she got home from work andclimbed into bed she was thinking about the money and what the lady hadwritten. How could the lady have known how much she and her husbandneeded it？ With the baby due next month，it was going to be hard. She knew howworried her husband was，and as he lay sleeping next to her，she gave him a soft kiss andwhispered soft and low，“Everything’s going to be all right. I love you，Bryan.”
一天，一个男人看到一位老太太的车在路边抛锚了，即使天色昏暗，他仍看出她需要帮助。因此他把车停在老太太的奔驰前面后，走出驾驶室。当他走近老太太时他的庞蒂克车的引擎仍在工作。
尽管他面带微笑，她仍对他心存疑虑。在过去的大概1个小时里，没人停车帮助她，而他看上去又穷又饿，不像好人，难道想趁火打劫吗？
看着她站在冷空气中，他知道的，她受到了惊吓。他明白她的感受，她的心中充满了只有恐惧才能产生的阵阵凉意。
他说：“女士，我来帮你。为什么不在暖和的车里待着？对了，我叫布莱恩·安得森。”
原来，只是轮胎漏气而已，但对一个老太太而言，已经够糟糕的了。布莱恩爬到车底寻找放千斤顶的位置，摸索中手指擦破了一两次。不一会儿，可以换车胎了。布莱恩正拧紧凸缘螺帽的那会儿，那位女士摇下车窗来和他说话。她说她从圣路易斯过来恰好路过此地，她都无法形容对他给予帮助的感激之情了。
026 不畏将来，不念过往布莱恩只是微笑着关上她的车后盖。
那位女士询问酬金数额，布莱恩压根就没想过要什么酬劳。在他看来，这不是工作，这只是帮助那些需要帮助的人而已。
他对她说，若真想表示谢意，那么下次如果看到别人需要帮助，她可以伸出援手。“并想起我”，布莱恩补充说。
布莱恩一直等到女士开车跑远后才继续上路。这是寒冷阴沉的一天，但是他心情愉悦地朝着家的方向前行，最后他的车消失在黄昏里。
沿路开了几英里，老太太看到前边有家小咖啡店。她进去匆匆简单地吃些东西，以便驱驱寒气再赶最后一段回家的路程。女招待拿着一块干净的毛巾走过来，帮她擦拭湿头发。她面带甜甜笑意。老太太注意到，怀有近八个月身孕的女招待，竟丝毫没有因身体的不适而影响工作态度。老太太猜想着，像这样物质上如此匮乏的人是如何做到对陌生人嘘寒问暖的，然后她想起了什么。
用餐后，她付了一张面额100美元的钞票。女招待迅速离开去找钱，但是那位老太太却悄悄地走出了门外。女招待回到原位时已找不到女士的身影。然后，她注意到餐巾上写着留言。她含着泪读着这位不辞而别的客人写在餐巾上的留言：“你不欠我什么。我也有过困难的时候，是一位好心人伸出了援手，就像我帮你一样。如果真想回报，那么照这么做：不要让这爱的纽带在你这里终止。”餐巾纸下还放着4张100美元的钞票。
那天晚上，女招待从夜色中回到家，爬上床时，她还在想着好心人的留言和她的馈赠。老太太怎么知道自己和丈夫急需钱？随着孩子在下个月出生，一家人的日子会更加艰辛，她知道丈夫是多么担忧。
当丈夫躺在身边熟睡时，她温柔地吻了他一下，在他耳边轻声细语：“一切都会好起来的。我爱你，布莱恩。”
轻英语
人际关系的英语表达
buddy 哥们儿
BFF（best friends forever）最好的朋友
confidante 红颜知己
colleague 同事
intimate 至交
sworn brother 结拜兄弟
partner 搭档
companion 同伴
Playmate 游伴
pen pal 笔友
comrade-in-arms 战友
bosom friend 知心朋友
childhood sweetheart 青梅竹马
team 团队
follower 追随者
The Parrot Calls for Free
呼唤自由的鹦鹉
Man，a great man，a fighterfor freedom was traveling in themountains. He stayed in a caravansfor the night. He was amazed that inthe caravans there was a beautifulparrot in a golden cage，continuallyrepeating “Freedom！ Freedom！”，and it was such a place that whent h e p a r r o t r e p e a t e d t h e w o r d“Freedom！” it would go on echoingin the valleys，in the mountains.
The man thought： “I have seenmany parrots，and I have thought they mustwant to be free from those cages… but I have never seen such a parrot whose whole day，fromthe morning to the evening when he goes to sleep，is spent in calling out for freedom.” He hadan idea. In the middle of the night，when the owner was fast asleep，he got up and opened thedoor of the cage. He whispered to the parrot，“Now get out.”
But he was very surprised that the parrot was clinging to the bars of the cage. He said tohim again and again，“Have you forgotten about freedom？ Just get out！ The door is open andthe owner is fast asleep； nobody will ever know. You just fly into the sky； the whole sky isyours.”
But the parrot was clinging so deeply，so hard，that the man said，“What is thematter？ Are you mad？” He tried to take theparrot out with his own hands，but the parrotstarted pecking at him，and at the same timehe was shouting，“Freedom！ Freedom！” Thevalleys in the night echoed and re-echoed，but the man was also stubborn； he was afreedom fighter.
He pulled the parrot out and threwhim into the sky； and he was very satisfied，although his hand was hurt. The parrot hadattacked him as forcefully as he could，butthe man was immensely satisfied that he hadmade a soul free. He went to sleep.
In the morning，as the man was wakingup，he heard the parrot shouting，“Freedom！
Freedom！” He thought perhaps the parrotmust be sitting on a tree or on a rock. Butwhen he came out，the parrot was sitting inthe cage. The door was open.
一个人，一个伟大的人，一个为了自由而战的斗士，正在山峦间穿行。今晚他留在一个小旅店里过夜。旅店里有一个金鸟笼，里面有一只漂亮的鹦鹉在不停地反复呼喊着：“自由！自由！”这让他很震惊。那里是这样的一种地方，当这只鹦鹉不断地反复呼喊“自由”的时候，这个词便会在山峦间、在深谷中久久回荡。
这个人想：“我看到过很多鹦鹉，也曾想过他们一定想从这些笼子里飞出去获早安，和梦想一起醒来 029得自由……但是，我从没有见过这样的鹦鹉，从早到晚，直到入睡，一整天都在呼喊着自由。”
他有了一个想法……午夜，当店主熟睡的时候，他起身打开了鸟笼门，小声地对鹦鹉说：“现在，出去吧。”
但是令他吃惊的是这只鹦鹉竟抓着鸟笼的横木不放。他对它一遍又一遍地说：“你忘了自由吗？
快出去！门开着，店主熟睡着，没有人会看到。你只要飞向天空，整片天空就是你的了。”