一個患自閉癥的弟弟

一個患自閉癥的弟弟

A Sibling with Autism

身邊帶著一個患有自閉癥的弟弟是一種什么樣的體驗？對于這個特殊的弟弟，這位姐姐又是怎么想的呢？一起來聽聽她的心聲吧！

My brother Pat is1)brilliant. He is priceless. His brain works in ways that mine never will. But he has autism.

I have had a unique life. I grew up with a little brother whose needs were always more important than mine. To be the sister of a child with autism means every day is crazy. You never know what to expect. It’s stressful. You grow up very quickly. You deal with a lot of emotions and anxieties that never cross the minds of other 8-year-olds. However, what you gain are2)irreplaceable life experiences. They turn you into a strong, independent and3)caring adult who knows the true meaning of love, hard work, patience and family.

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autism（孤獨癥），又稱自閉癥，是廣泛性發育障礙的代表性疾病。該癥患兒在言語交流方面存在明顯障礙，且對一般兒童所喜愛的玩具和游戲缺乏興趣。該病癥為慢性病程，約2/3患兒在成年后無法獨立生活，需要終生受人照顧和養護。

詞組加油站

deal with 克服（壞情緒）

turn into 轉變為

1) brilliant ['br?l??nt] adj. 出色的，聰明的

3) caring ['ke?r??] adj. 體貼的

詞組加油站

make progress 取得進展trade…for…

以……換得……

5) genuinely ['d?enj??nl?] adv. 真正地

When I was little, the doctors said Pat would never speak. I wondered if my brother would ever be able to talk to me and tell me how he felt. I wondered if he even knew I was his sister and what it meant to have a big sister.

Gradually, he proved everyone wrong and he spoke! Pat now rides his bike all by himself. He also4)volunteers at the library and the hospital. He has made progress that could inspire anyone on their darkest days. I do know that there is nothing Pat can’t do. And if he lives with me for the rest of my life, I will be the luckiest big sister in the whole world.

And to my brother, I love you more than words will ever be able to describe. I would not trade you for anything. The struggles make us stronger. I am the luckiest girl in the world to have learned what life is5)genuinely about. It’s about love.

我的弟弟帕特十分出色，他是無價的。他大腦的運作方式是我永遠無法企及的。但他患有自閉癥。

在成長過程中，身邊有一個患上自閉癥的弟弟讓我的生活與眾不同，他的需求總是比我的更為重要。成為自閉癥兒童的姐姐意味著每一天都是瘋狂的，你不知道接下來會發生些什么，壓力挺大的。你會迅速成長起來，需要面對種種情緒波動、焦慮煩憂，而這些是其他八歲的同齡孩子根本不會想到的。然而你也是有收獲的，那便是無可替代的生活經歷。你長大成人，這些經歷讓你變得堅強、獨立、充滿關愛之心，會讓你知道愛、付出、耐心和家庭的真正意義。

在我小的時候，醫生們說帕特永遠也說不了話。我不知道弟弟日后還能否和我交談，告訴我他的感受，也不清楚他到底有沒有意識到我是他的姐姐，以及有個姐姐意味著什么。

隨著日子一天天過去，他證明了早前人們的說法都是錯誤的，他開口講話了！如今，帕特能自己騎自行車了，還在圖書館和醫院做著志愿者。他取得的進步與成績足以鼓勵所有處于最陰郁時期的人們。我就知道帕特是可以做到任何事情的。如果余生他能和我永遠生活在一起，我將會是全世界最幸運的姐姐。

我想對弟弟說，我愛你，這種愛非語言所能表達。你是任何事物都無法替代的。挫折讓我們變得更堅強。我是世界上最幸運的女孩，領悟到了生活的真諦，那便是愛。