Such is Love, Plain like Water如水普通的爱
◎ Jason
Every once in a while I will dial the familiar number.
It is usually he that picks up the phone. She will come up to him asking who the caller is. Knowingits me, she will grab the phone, say a few greeting words, and then start talking bad of him,complaints flooding out, all about chores and minor1 superficial details.
As always, he argues, and through the long-distance call I hear them quarreling seriously.
Quarreling seems to be bound with their life. He seems like a capricious boy, and she a little girlwho cannot bear with even a small grievance2. It is common that they fight each other half a dayover minor issues. Over and over again, they will quarrelthey are born to disagree with eachother.
Bored sometimes, I pretend to be very unhappy and yell, Couldnt you sTOP arguing and let myears have a quiet moment?
She pauses two seconds, and mumbles3, He always bullies4 me. I almost see her, pitiful as she is.
Then I turn soft, and try to find faults in him.
Why did you bully5 her?
He listens to me, irritated, Who bullies her? It is she that bullies me!
Just as the saying goes, a righteousjudge is never able to decide who is right and who is wrong inan argument between a couple. I tried to intervene, only to get them into more serious debate.
Like an actor and an actress, they are indulged in acting6. With me watching, they end up in moreheated disagreements. So I dont want to bother any more. I just stand by when they quarrel.
In the end, she will find her eyes red, and wipe tears off her cheeks. He gets upset and attempts tosoothe her.?He looks funnystaring at her like a mad frog with two eyes open wide, he yells withdetermination,
From now on I will wash all the dishes. He seems to be swearing. And she weeps and smilingflowers bloom on her face.
One day he got bit by a snake while working in the farmland, one leg swelling7 furiously. He wasthen rushed to hospital where he went through a series of tormenthe got injected to let thecontaminated blood out.
Seeing the blood, she was scared to big tears, crying loud.
STOP it. Thats enough. You are getting on my nerves. I am not gonna die. He shouted, frowning.
She got mad at the word die that he had mentioned.
Why did you say that? She immediately quarreled hard with him, not to sTOP for a long while.
Doctors were watching on, amused.
Isnt quarreling more effective than pain-killing pills? The doctors teased.
They looked at each other, embarrassed and laughing. That finally sTOPped their quarreling.
In order to save hospital expenses, he insisted on going home despite her mad disagreements.
Lying in bed, he was having an intravenous drip for a continuous period of 12 days. She was busydealing with housework and everything else out of home. She was weak and thin, and too muchwork had made her even more skinny.
Witnessing her change, he hurt in the heart. One night he wanted to drink water. He did not wakeher up, pulled himself out of the bed, and fell over because his legs were too weak.
His fall actually woke her up. She rushed to support him to stand up. She scolded him for nothaving waken her up. He said that he could manage. A serious quarrel was about to burst outagain.
I called them from Zhuhai, the beautiful city of relaxation8 and exciting views. I wanted to depict9 tothem how pretty a city Zhuhai is. He was surprised that I had travelled such a great distance, towhere he and she had never been all their life. He then believed that I had accomplished10 a bigsuccess, and that I had significantly broadened my horizons. He went on talk in honor of me, voicetrembling with pride; she was beside him, excited all the same. They did not mention anythingabout the family change and their suffering.
I had not heard about his being bit by a snake until she told me her grievance.
He treated me bad again. He could not get out of bed by himself, but he wanted to be strong, andso he fell. I was trying to pull him up on his feet, and I just told a few words of complaints whenhe got out of bed, yelling that I was clumsy.
No, no, no, she was not telling the truth.
He was eager to tell me that she was really silly, that she did not know how to change theintravenous drip bottle. Then they started it over again quarreling. And this time I was listening tothem in good patience, holding the telephone receiver.
Water was roaring in the sea out the window, waves climbing up and falling down, just like what Iwas feeling at the bottom of my heart.
He suddenly realized that they should sTOP. He said that it was a long- distance call. Sheimmediately sTOPped arguing.
Why didnt you remind me earlier? How much money have we wasted her?
She hangs up before I had a chance to talk. I know they would have a good fight again.
They are my father and mother. He is 66, and she is 64.
我每隔一段时间都要拨打一个熟知的电话号码。
每次一直他接起电话。然后她问他，这是哪个打来的。了解是我的电话时，她抢过电话，说几句简单的问候，然后就开始抱怨他的坏处。接着就开始投诉，比如地板被水淹之类的鸡毛蒜皮的小事。
一如平常，通过长途电话，我能听到他们非常严肃地在争吵着。
争吵好像成了他们日常不可或缺的一部分。他看着像个反复无常的孩子，而她像一个不可以忍受丁点委屈的小姑娘。他们常常为日常的小问题吵上半天。他们一遍又一遍地争吵仿佛生来就是建议不和的。
有时我感觉无聊了，就假装非常不开心，大喊道：你们能否停止争论，让我的耳朵安静一小会吗？
她停顿两秒钟，喃喃自语：他一直欺负我。我几乎可以想象到她装可怜的样子。
然后我的语气就会变得轻柔，并想方法找到他的错误。
你为何要欺负她？
他听到我的质问，恼火道：哪个欺负她呢？这是她在欺负我！
正如俗话所说，一个正直的法官也没办法判决一对夫妇之间的矛盾，没办法决定到底是哪个对哪个错。我试图干涉他们，但只能使他们陷入更严肃的辩论中去。
就像演员，他们沉迷于如此的剧情。我看，结局只能是愈加激烈的分歧。所以我不想打扰他们了。作为旁观者的我，只不过在争吵的时候看着他们。
最后，她双眼开始泛红，去擦脸颊上流下的泪水。他开始不安，并试图安慰她。他盯着她哭得红肿的双眼，就像是只生气的青蛙。他妥协了。
从目前开始，我会洗所有些盘子。他信誓旦旦地说。而她也相信他，抹掉眼泪，微笑，顿时她的脸上绽放出了花朵。
有一天，他在田里劳作时被蛇咬了，一条腿肿得厉害。他立即被送往医院抢救，经过准时的救治他被注射了一针可以让污血流出来的药剂。
看到血，她吓得大哭起来，落下大滴的眼泪。
别哭了。够了。让我烦去世了，放心好了，我不会死的。他大叫着，皱着眉头。
她生气了，不准他说死这个词。
你为何如此说？她立即同他争辩了非常长一段时间。
大夫们看他们斗嘴，笑了。
吵架不是比止痛药更有效吗？大夫们取笑道。
他们你看我，我看你，不好意思地笑了起来，终于停止了争吵。
为了节省住院费，他坚持要回家，尽管她极力反对。
他躺在床上连续注射了十二天的点滴。这类天，都是她在处置家家外的事情，本来身体单薄的她，愈发看上去瘦骨嶙峋。
看她天天忙碌，他感觉心里非常愧疚。有天夜里，他想要喝水。他没叫醒她，而是计划自己去喝水，当他下床的时候，由于腿上的伤痛，从床上跌了下来。
她被惊醒了，快点起床冲过去扶着他。她责备他：喝水如何不叫我来倒！我一个人可以！一场激烈的争吵又迸发了。
当我从珠海给他们打电话，向他们描绘这个漂亮休闲而合适居住的城市时，他感到很惊讶。我到了这么好的地方，而他和她从来没来过。他非常高兴，感觉我目前很成功，又显著地拓宽了我们的视线。然后，他用十分自豪的语气夸奖我从小大到的荣耀，她也在他身边跟他一块开心着。他们从来不提及任何关于家庭的变化和他们的困难。
假如她不告诉我，我还不了解他被蛇咬伤了。
你知不知道，他对我可坏了。他不可以从床上下来，还非要逞强，就跌倒了。我只不过想去扶他，就说了几句，他就开始骂我，对我大喊大叫。
不，不，不是，事实不是如此的。
他急切地想告诉我：她真的非常傻，也不了解拿着点滴瓶。话音刚落，他们又开始斗嘴了。这一次，我就拿着听筒，非常耐心地听他们争吵。
看着窗户外面，海水在大海里翻滚，海浪连绵起伏，就像我此刻心底最深处的感受一样。
他忽然意识到，他们应该停止。他说，这是一个长途电话。她立即停止了争吵。
你为何不早一点提醒我？多少钱，大家浪费了她多少钱？
其实她挂断电话之前，我就非常想说我了解他们又将开始另一个斗争了。
他们是我的爸爸和妈妈。他66岁，她64岁。
