我留着一盘很旧的磁带。
Wǒ liú zhe yī pán hěn jiù de cídài.
I keep a very old cassette tape.
它是我所有磁带里的最后一盘。
Tā shì wǒ suǒyǒu cídài lǐ de zuìhòu yī pán.
It is the last of all the tapes I once had.
别的都在搬家的时候丢了。
Biéde dōu zài bānjiā de shíhou diū le.
The others were all lost in moves.
只有它，跟着我搬了五次家。
Zhǐyǒu tā, gēn zhe wǒ bān le wǔ cì jiā.
Only this one moved with me five times.
搬到哪里，就带到哪里。
Bān dào nǎlǐ, jiù dài dào nǎlǐ.
Wherever I moved, it came along.
妻子说，现在谁还听磁带。
Qīzi shuō, xiànzài shéi/shuí hái tīng cídài.
My wife says, who still listens to tapes nowadays?
手机一开，什么歌没有。
Shǒujī yī kāi, shénme gē méiyǒu.
Turn on a phone, and every song is there.
我说，这盘磁带里没有歌。
Wǒ shuō, zhè pán cídài lǐ méiyǒu gē.
I said, there are no songs on this tape.
她问，那有什么。
Tā wèn, nà yǒu shénme.
She asked, then what is on it?
我说，有我们家一九九四年的一个晚上。
Wǒ shuō, yǒu wǒmen jiā yī jiǔ jiǔ sì nián de yī gè wǎnshang.
I said, an evening of our family in 1994.
上中学的时候，我很喜欢听歌。
Shàng zhōngxué de shíhou, wǒ hěn xǐhuan tīng gē.
In middle school, I loved listening to songs.
一盘磁带要卖十块钱。
Yī pán cídài yào mài shí kuài qián.
One cassette cost ten yuan.
我一个月的零花钱只有五块。
Wǒ yī gè yuè de línghuāqián zhǐyǒu wǔ kuài.
My monthly pocket money was only five yuan.
我就从每天的早饭钱里省。
Wǒ jiù cóng měi tiān de zǎofàn qián lǐ shěng.
So I saved out of my breakfast money.
两个月不吃早点，能攒出一盘带子。
Liǎng gè yuè bù chī zǎo diǎn, néng zǎn chū yī pán dài zi.
Two months without breakfast bought one tape.
新磁带买回来，先不睡觉。
Xīn cídài mǎi huílái, xiān bù shuìjiào.
The day a new tape came home, sleep came later.
我坐在床上，把歌词看了一遍又一遍。
Wǒ zuò zài chuáng shàng, bǎ gēcí kàn le yī biàn yòu yī biàn.
I sat on the bed reading the lyrics over and over.
第二天眼睛是红的，心里是满的。
Dì èr tiān yǎnjing shì hóng de, xīnlǐ shì mǎn de.
The next day my eyes were red, but my heart was full.
那时候，同学的磁带可以借着听。
Nà shíhou, tóngxué de cídài kěyǐ jiè zhe tīng.
In those days, classmates could lend each other tapes.
借来的带子，先把歌词抄下来，再还回去。
Jiè lái de dài zi, xiān bǎ gēcí chāo xiàlái, zài hái huíqù.
A borrowed tape meant copying the lyrics down before returning it.
我的歌词本抄了很厚的一大本。
Wǒ de gēcí běn chāo le hěn hòu de yī dà běn.
My lyric notebook grew into a thick volume.
带子听久了，会出问题。
Dài zi tīng jiǔ le, huì chū wèntí.
A tape played too long would have problems.
带子从机器里被扯出来，缠成一团。
Dài zi cóng jīqì lǐ bèi chě chūlái, chán chéng yī tuán.
The ribbon got pulled out of the machine and knotted into a ball.
我用铅笔插进带子的孔里，慢慢转。
Wǒ yòng qiānbǐ chā jìn dài zi de kǒng lǐ, màn màn zhuǎn.
I stuck a pencil into the reel hole and turned it slowly.
一圈一圈，把带子卷回去。
Yī quān yī quān, bǎ dài zi juǎn huíqù.
Round by round, I wound the ribbon back.
断了的带子，用胶水接好，还能听。
Duàn le de dài zi, yòng jiāoshuǐ jiē hǎo, hái néng tīng.
A broken ribbon, glued back together, could still play.
只是接到的地方，声音会停一下。
Zhǐshì jiē dào de dìfang, shēngyīn huì tíng yíxià.
Only at the joint would the sound pause for a beat.
那一下很安静，像歌在换气。
Nà yíxià hěn ānjìng, xiàng gē zài huàn qì.
That beat was quiet, as if the song were catching its breath.
爷爷不懂这些歌。
Yéye bù dǒng zhèxiē gē.
Grandpa did not understand these songs.
他喜欢听戏，有一台旧收音机。
Tā xǐhuan tīng xì, yǒu yī tái jiù shōuyīnjī.
He loved opera and had an old radio.
收音机放在他床头，从早响到晚。
Shōuyīnjī fàng zài tā chuáng tóu, cóng zǎo xiǎng dào wǎn.
The radio sat by his bed, sounding from morning to night.
戏里的人一开口，爷爷就跟着哼。
Xì lǐ de rén yī kāi kǒu, yéye jiù gēn zhe hēng.
As soon as the singers opened their mouths, Grandpa hummed along.
他哼得不对，可是很高兴。
Tā hēng de bù duì, kěshì hěn gāoxìng.
He hummed it wrong, but very happily.
一九九四年冬天的一个晚上，家里包饺子。
Yī jiǔ jiǔ sì nián dōngtiān de yī gè wǎnshang, jiā lǐ bāo jiǎozi.
One winter evening in 1994, the family was making dumplings.
我那台小机器放在桌子上，开着。
Wǒ nà tái xiǎo jīqì fàng zài zhuōzi shàng, kāi zhe.
My little machine sat on the table, switched on.
妈妈和面，奶奶包，爷爷哼戏。
Māma hé miàn, nǎinai bāo, yéye hēng xì.
Mother worked the dough, Grandma wrapped, and Grandpa hummed opera.
我不知道是谁碰下了录音的键。
Wǒ bù zhīdào shì shéi/shuí pèng xià le lùyīn de jiàn.
I never knew who touched the record button.
等我发现，它已经录了半个多小时。
Děng wǒ fāxiàn, tā yǐjīng lù le bàn gè duō xiǎoshí.
By the time I noticed, it had recorded for over half an hour.
我气坏了，一盘好带子就这样不能听了。
Wǒ qì huài le, yī pán hǎo dài zi jiù zhèyàng bù néng tīng le.
I was furious; a good tape ruined just like that.
爷爷说，录就录了，这有什么好气的。
Yéye shuō, lù jiù lù le, zhè yǒu shénme hǎo qì de.
Grandpa said, recorded is recorded; what is there to be angry about?
他说，这里面有我们家的声音。
Tā shuō, zhèlǐ miàn yǒu wǒmen jiā de shēngyīn.
He said, inside there is the sound of our family.
当时我只要我的歌，听不进这些。
Dāngshí wǒ zhǐyào wǒ de gē, tīng bù jìn zhèxiē.
Back then I only wanted my songs and could not take this in.
我把磁带扔进抽屉，很多年没有再听。
Wǒ bǎ cídài rēng jìn chōuti, hěn duō nián méiyǒu zài tīng.
I threw the tape into a drawer and did not listen for many years.
后来爷爷走了。
Hòulái yéye zǒu le.
Later Grandpa passed away.
后来奶奶也走了。
Hòulái nǎinai yě zǒu le.
Later Grandma passed away too.
家里的老房子也拆了。
Jiā lǐ de lǎo fángzi yě chāi le.
The old family house was torn down as well.
五次搬家，扔掉的旧东西数不过来。
Wǔ cì bānjiā, rēng diào de jiù dōngxi shù búguò lái.
Over five moves, more old things were thrown out than I can count.
这盘磁带不知道怎么留下了。
Zhè pán cídài bù zhīdào zěnme liúxia le.
Somehow this tape stayed.
前年整理东西，我又看见了它。
Qiánnián zhěnglǐ dōngxi, wǒ yòu kànjiàn le tā.
The year before last, while sorting things, I saw it again.
我想听听里面到底是什么。
Wǒ xiǎng tīng tīng lǐmiàn dàodǐ shì shénme.
I wanted to hear what was really inside.
可是放磁带的那台机器早就坏了。
Kěshì fàng cídài de nà tái jīqì zǎo jiù huài le.
But the machine that played tapes had broken long ago.
我找遍了家附近修电器的店。
Wǒ zhǎo biàn le jiā fùjìn xiū diànqì de diàn.
I searched every appliance repair shop near my home.
年轻的师傅都摇头，说这种机器没有人修了。
Niánqīng de shīfu dōu yáo tóu, shuō zhè zhǒng jīqì méiyǒu rén xiū le.
The young repairmen all shook their heads; nobody fixes these anymore.
最后一位年纪大的师傅说，让我试试。
Zuìhòu yī wèi niánjì dà de shīfu shuō, ràng wǒ shì shì.
Finally an older master said, let me try.
他打开机器，换上了一个旧零件。
Tā dǎkāi jīqì, huàn shàng le yī gè jiù língjiàn.
He opened the machine and fitted an old part.
他说，这样的零件，用一个少一个。
Tā shuō, zhèyàng de língjiàn, yòng yī gè shǎo yī gè.
He said parts like this grow fewer with every use.
我把磁带放进去，按下了键。
Wǒ bǎ cídài fàng jìnqù, àn xià le jiàn.
I put the tape in and pressed the button.
带子慢慢转起来了。
Dài zi màn màn zhuǎn qǐlái le.
The ribbon began to turn slowly.
先是一点很轻的声音，像风。
Xiān shì yī diǎn hěn qīng de shēngyīn, xiàng fēng.
First came a very soft sound, like wind.
然后是切菜的声音，是开水的声音。
Ránhòu shì qiē cài de shēngyīn, shì kāishuǐ de shēngyīn.
Then the sound of chopping vegetables, of boiling water.
然后是一个女人的笑声，是奶奶。
Ránhòu shì yī gè nǚrén de xiào shēng, shì nǎinai.
Then a woman's laugh; it was Grandma.
然后爷爷开了口，哼了半句戏。
Ránhòu yéye kāi le kǒu, hēng le bàn jù xì.
Then Grandpa opened his mouth and hummed half a line of opera.
他哼得还是不对。
Tā hēng de háishi bù duì.
He still hummed it wrong.
还是让我流了眼泪。
Háishi ràng wǒ liú le yǎnlèi.
And it still brought tears to my eyes.
我坐在那里，听完了三十多年前的那个晚上。
Wǒ zuò zài nàlǐ, tīng wán le sān shí duō nián qián de nàge wǎnshang.
I sat there and listened to that evening from over thirty years ago.
听见妈妈喊我的名字，喊我洗手吃饭。
Tīngjiàn māma hǎn wǒ de míngzi, hǎn wǒ xǐ shǒu chī fàn.
I heard Mother call my name, calling me to wash my hands and eat.
听见爷爷说，慢点吃，锅里还有。
Tīngjiàn yéye shuō, màn diǎn chī, guō lǐ hái yǒu.
I heard Grandpa say, eat slowly, there is more in the pot.
机器停的时候，店里很安静。
Jīqì tíng de shíhou, diàn lǐ hěn ānjìng.
When the machine stopped, the shop was very quiet.
那位师傅说，这带子你要好好留着。
Nà wèi shīfu shuō, zhè dài zi nǐ yàohǎo hǎo liú zhe.
The master said, you must keep this tape well.
我说，会的，一定会。
Wǒ shuō, huì de, yídìng huì.
I said, I will, for certain.
回家的路上，我把磁带紧紧拿在手里。
Huí jiā de lùshang, wǒ bǎ cídài jǐn jǐn ná zài shǒu lǐ.
On the way home, I held the tape tightly in my hand.
现在它就放在我的床头。
Xiànzài tā jiù fàng zài wǒ de chuáng tóu.
Now it sits by my bed.
像爷爷当年的那台收音机。
Xiàng yéye dāngnián de nà tái shōuyīnjī.
Like Grandpa's old radio back then.
有的时候夜里醒了，我会看它一眼。
Yǒude shíhou yè lǐ xǐng le, wǒ huì kàn tā yī yǎn.
Some nights when I wake, I look over at it.
磁带不响了，可是那个晚上还在。
Cídài bù xiǎng le, kěshì nàge wǎnshang hái zài.
The tape no longer sounds, but that evening is still here.