一個鸚鵡救嬰兒的故事

by Jennifer S. Holland

翻譯：常青

一個鸚鵡救嬰兒的故事

by Jennifer S. Holland

翻譯：常青

我們聽過忠犬救主人的故事，或是海豚幫助在海上發生危難的人們的故事……但你有聽過鳥兒救人的故事嗎？就在十年前，一只鸚鵡盡它所能挽救了一個幼小的新生命。

Track 5

Meagan Howard and her close friend Samantha Kusk， both students， lived together in Denver. On mornings when Samantha had class， Meagan would watch her two-year-old daughter， Hannah.

Meagan’s pet Willie was a very clever parrot. Willie was really funny and a wonderful talker. He1）picked up quite a healthy vocabulary （“Silly Willie” was a favorite saying） and became a great2）mimic. Plus， he could do a3）spot-on4）whistle of The Andy Griffith Show注1theme song.

One day in 2006， with Samantha at school， Hannah had5）perched herself in front of the morning cartoons while Meagan was busy in the kitchen， preparing the little girl her favorite breakfast， a6）pop-tart. When the7）toaster spit out the8）pastry， Meagan placed it at the center of the kitchen table to cool. She9）peeked at Hannah and was confident that the child10）was fully engaged with the TV， so she11）slipped out quickly to use the bathroom.

“I was gone maybe 30 seconds，” Meagan recalls. “And suddenly， I heard the bird. Willie was going crazy，12）squawking and13）shrieking.”

She heard two very14）distinct words from the parrot’s mouth.

“Mama！ Baby！”

He repeated over and over again. “Mama！ Baby！ Mama！ Baby！”

Meagan ran out of the bathroom to find Hannah in the kitchen. Hannah was holding the partly eaten pop-tart，15）gasping for air， her face and lips became a16）terrifying shade of blue. And Willie was still shrieking.

“Hannah had climbed up on a chair and gotten the pop-tart and she was clearly17）choking on it，”says Meagan. “I18）grabbed her immediately and started doing the Heimlich Maneuver注2until the piece came out.”

The bird quieted down and Meagan burst into tears. Hannah was fine， already smiling her big smile.

“Samantha was so grateful， thanking me for what I did，” Meagan says. “But I said， ‘Don’t thank me！ It was Willie who was the hero！’ ”

What was really surprising was that though Willie knew the word “mama，” he’d never before combined it with the word “baby.” And he hasn’t said them together ever since.

Samantha always19）had a soft spot for her friend’s pet， but after that， “the soft spot grew and grew. She was just so grateful，” Meagan says. “I know Willie will forever be Samantha’s hero.”

1） pick up 不費力地學會

2） mimic ［'mImIk】 n. 模仿者

3） spot-on 準確的，恰好的

4） whistle ［'wIs?l】 n. 口哨聲

5） perch ［p??t?】 v. 棲息，就位

6） pop-tart 一種上面有果醬或果陷的小圓餅

7） toaster ［'t?ust?】 n. 烤面包機

8） pastry ［'peIstrI】 n. 酥皮糕點

9） peek ［pi?k】 v. 偷偷地一看，一瞥

10） be engaged with 忙碌于……

11） slip out 悄悄地溜出去

12） squawk ［skw??k】

v.（飛禽因受傷或受驚）而粗厲地叫

13） shriek ［?ri?k】 v. 尖聲叫喊

14） distinct ［dI'stI?kt】 adj. 不同的，清楚的

15） gasp ［gɑ?sp】 v. 喘氣

16） terrifying ［'terIfaII?】 adj. 可怕的

17） choke ［t??uk】 v. 噎，使不能呼吸

18） grab ［gr?b】 v. 抓住

19） have a soft spot for 偏愛，有特殊的好感

注1：即《安迪·格里菲斯秀》，美國著名電視喜劇，于1960年開播，1968年停播。

注2：海姆里克腹部沖擊法，用于呼吸道異物的排除，主要用于呼吸道完全堵塞或嚴重堵塞的患者。

The Story of a Parrot Who Saved a Baby