She went on to tell me that some months later，both she and her husband came home one afternoon to find that the three words had been scratched over in an attempt to cover them up and that the stick figures，heart and flower had been added，and they both took that as a sign that their son had come back to them in both spirit and body.She then smiled at me in a way that said we are okay now and then went off to speak to other neighbors.
There is no doubt that for many months these three words etched on the piano would have created significant distress and sadness for my two neighbors as it was clear that they had been directed at them.What the son had done had hurt them deeply，however，the son had come to realize what he had done and what it meant to his parents during that low period in his life finally.I thought at that very moment that he may have decided to make a statement which said I am sorry and the only way he could do that was with the three images.
I am reminded of a well-known quote："People will forget what you said or what you did，but people will never forget how you made them feel."
What that young man said and did in writing those three words may over time be forgotten，however，what he did and said when he etched those three images into the piano made his parents feel something that will never be forgotten-it was a visual expression of the love of a son who had returned to them.
Their family life seems much more settled and happier now even if the sound of music and singing does not punctuate the weekends as it did before，however，this neighbor can live without that in the knowledge that there is again love and music in their hearts.
很多年以来，每当我周末在屋子里干家务活时，总会定时听到一阵钢琴声以及跟着钢琴乐唱起的歌声。那美妙的充满爱意的音乐是从我的一位邻居的家里传出来的，显然，这家人很喜欢周末聚在钢琴旁弹琴唱歌，享受天伦之乐。
居住在这个相当悠闲宁静的郊区的确有许多好处，其中聆听邻居家的琴声和歌声可算是周末闲暇中的意外收获，令我尤其期待，但在当时，我却从未意识到这一点。
大约是三年前，钢琴声和歌声突然停止了。直到那位邻居告诉我他们的小孩正在面临的问题，我才明白是怎么一回事——这个家庭不再是一个幸福的整体了。
接下来的几个月，我发现邻居家的儿子和一群叛逆少年混在一起，他们沉迷于深夜狂欢、酗酒、磕药，并且做许多危害社会的事情。我猜想也许这就是所谓的“同龄压力”吧。对此，我那两个友善的邻居忧心忡忡。他们一直是一对优秀的家长，当我周末处理家庭杂务时，他们还曾带给我美好的享受。
在接下来的几年里，我经常和这对邻居夫妇接触交流，并在他们遇到麻烦时尽力给予他们一些帮助。我也曾和他们的儿子交谈过几次，但收效不大。这个少年似乎很难重新回到正途。他的家人、他个人以及学校生活为此都受到了很大影响。
然而，恰恰在一年前，情况开始出现好转。这个少年几乎已经脱离那帮坏小子，并开始走出他人生中这段可怕的时期。他重新回到学校完成他的中学学业。现在，他正在认真学习以成为一名理疗家。作为一位局外人同时又是他的邻居，看到这个少年和他的父母终于重新恢复了正常的生活状态，我由衷地高兴。
我们这些熟络的邻居时常会聚在一起庆祝那些一年一度的特别节日。最近，那位儿子刚刚改邪归正的邻居邀请我们以及其他一些家庭去他们家共进午餐以庆祝一个特别的年度节日。
那是一个轻松愉快的下午，我坐在钢琴凳上，我的前面便是那架很久未曾奏响的钢琴。那是一架表面涂了光亮黑漆的钢琴。不经意间，我留意到那架钢琴的表面——就在钢琴琴键的上面，有一些刻划的字迹和图案。
琴键上面刻着“我恨你”的字样，那三个字似乎是在情绪极度愤怒的情况下刻上去的——那些字的字迹显得很粗暴，并且深深地镂刻在钢琴的表面。而在那三个字的上面又有一连串互相交叉的刮痕，似乎要盖住那三个字。
在那几个粗鲁的字迹和令人寒心的言语的下面，还有三个横跨在钢琴表面的图案。那是三个棍状的人物图像，两个大的，一个略微小一点，紧接着还有一个心形和一朵花儿。
我坐在那里，迫切地想弄清楚那三个字和三个图案所代表的意思。但我又觉得直接去询问太唐突，我怕询问起来会勾起过去的一些不好的回忆——那些过往还是不要提起的好。然而，当我的邻居——那个年轻人的母亲看见我正在观察钢琴的表面时，她走过来，挨着我坐在琴凳上，告诉了我想知道的答案。
她眼里闪着泪花向我解释说，那三个字是她儿子在极度愤怒的情绪下刻上去的。当时他正处于人生最低迷的一段时期，正在极力与自己面临的压力进行抗争。她说他们曾经试图抹去那些字迹，但都无济于事；加上修复钢琴面板的费用很高，他们无力负担。同时，当时他们也不知道儿子是否会再次刻上那些字迹，于是决定不再去理会。
接着她告诉我，几个月后的一个下午，当她和丈夫回到家，发现那三个字已经被刮去，覆盖在字上面的是那些棍状的人物图像，还有心形和花。他们都把这看做是儿子身心回归的标志。然后她对我笑了笑，似乎在告诉我他们现在过得很好。之后，她走开，去和其他邻居攀谈起来。
可想而知，很长一段时间里，那刻在钢琴上的三个字给我的两个邻居带来了刻骨铭心的痛苦和悲伤——那几个字很明显是针对他们的。那位儿子过往的行为曾经深深伤害了他们，但最终他意识到了自己人生低谷时期的所作所为对父母的伤害。我想，就在他幡然醒悟的那一刻，他也许已经决定要进行一次忏悔告白，而他唯一的方式就是画下那三个图案。
我突然想起一句名言：“人们会忘记你过往的言语和行为，但人们永远不会忘记你带给他们的感受。”
随着时间的流逝，那位儿子写下那三个字的行为以及他要表明的意思会被人们遗忘。但是他后来在钢琴上刻下那三个图案的举动以及他想表达的意思，却会让他的父母永远记住那一刻的感动——它淋漓尽致地展现了一个迷途知返的儿子对父母的爱。
如今，这位邻居一家的生活显得更加安定幸福，即使音乐和歌声不再像以前那样在周末定时响起。但是，他们一家并不需要那些作为生活的寄托了，因为爱和音乐就在他们的心里。
One minute novelist
一分钟小说家
When I was 25 years old and working in Chicago as an editor at the American Bar Association，I wanted nothing more than to become a novelist.In the mornings，I'd awaken at six to write.In the evenings，I was known to stand up，mid-conversation with friends，and announce I had an idea and had to go home to write.
One October day，a co-worker and I were trying to think up Halloween costumes."How about if I went as a writer，with a typewriter slung from my shoulders？"I asked."I could walk around like one of those cigarette girls，saying，'Short stories？Novels'？"
Of course，I never did it.
But something about the idea grabbed me：writing in public on demand；not performance art，but performance writing.Behind the absurdity，I sensed the possibility of touching people more directly with my writing than I ever had while sitting alone at my desk.If nothing else，it would be a great story for my grandchildren.
I tried out the idea on my writers？group first."So，what do you think？"I asked，looking around the room，like a dog waiting to be petted.
"Well，Dan，"said one friend，"it's kind of weird."
I didn't mind-that was the whole point.
So on Sunday，April 24，1983，I carried my 28-pound，circa 1953 typewriter and a director's chair through the stiff winds of Chicago and set up shop on Michigan Avenue.Perching the typewriter on my lap，I taped a sign to the back of it-"60-Second Novels Written While You Wait"-and invited anyone who passed by to get an instant novel.
The whole thing took on the aspect of a psychological experiment.Some people laughed cynically and said，"What a gimmick！"Others looked sympathetic("A starving poet！").One lady asked me if I was selling the typewriter.But I had never felt more alive.
Then a couple walked up."I don't know what you're doing，"the woman said，"but whatever it is，I want one."The man added，with a wry smile，"It certainly is something extremely unusual."
I asked their names(plus a few other nosy questions)and began writing.I titled their story，"Something Extremely Unusual."