芒果街上的小屋作者：「美」桑德拉·希斯内罗丝(23)

Cathy who is queen of cats has cats and cats and cats. Baby cats, big cats, skinny cats, sick cats. Cats asleep like little donuts. Cats on top of the refrigerator. Cats taking a walk on the dinner table. Her house is like cat heaven.
You want a friend, she says. Okay, I"ll be your friend. But only till next Tuesday. That"s when we move away. Got to. Then as if she forgot I just moved in, she says the neighborhood is getting bad.
Cathy"s father will have to fly to France one day and find her great great distant grand cousin on her father"s side and inherit the family house. How do I know this is so? She told me so. In the meantime they"ll just have to move a little farther north from Mango Street, a little farther away every time people like us keep moving in.
四棵细瘦的树
他们是唯一懂得我的。我是唯一懂得它们的。儿长着细细的脖颈和尖尖的肘骨，像我的一样。不属于这里但到了这里的四个。市政栽下充数的四棵残次品。从我的房间里我们可以听到它们的声音，可蕾妮只是睡觉，不能领略这些。
他们的力量是个秘密。他们在地下展开凶猛的根系。他们向上生长也向下生长，用它们须发样的脚趾攥紧泥土，用它们猛烈的牙齿噬咬天空，怒气从不懈怠。这就是它们坚持的方
式。
假如有一棵忘记了他存在的理由，他们就全都会像玻璃瓶里的郁金香一样耷拉下来，手挽着手。坚持，坚持，坚持。树儿在我睡着的时候说。他们教会人。