Three weeks in America

My parents arrived in Memphis on April 21.  It has been exactly three weeks.

爸爸妈妈４月２１号晚上到达美国，到今天整整三个星期。

爸爸妈妈收到的第一封英文信 This is the first English letter for my parents. 


爸爸妈妈在学英文，这是妈妈写的家庭作业。教英文的老师是一对会讲中文的美国夫妇，他们夸父母进步很快。
Father and mother are learning English now.  In their generation, they learned Russian in middle school, but no English education.  The English teachers are an American couple who can speak Chinese.  The teachers told me that my parents were making good progress.


母亲节的玫瑰。Rose bouquet for Mother's day

母亲节的时候爸爸买了一束玫瑰给妈妈，于是爸爸和我被狠狠地批评了一顿。后来有次我想给花换水时，不小心掉了片叶子，妈妈责备我：“这么不小心。”　其实叶子我本来是想扯掉的，想不到她竟这样珍惜。我想，虽然贬我已经成为她生活习惯的一部分，其实她对于这束玫瑰，内心还是有着小小的欢喜吧。后来，换水和剪枝的事情就是妈妈一手包办了。
On Mother's day, daddy bought a bunch of roses for mom, (and mom became angry, so my father and I had suffered/enjoyed a good criticism from her. ) Later, when I was changing the water for the bouquet, a leave fell down, my mom saw it and warned me: "Be careful. "  Actually I was about to get rid of some leaves, I did not expect that she cherished the flower so much.  I realized, although she had developed the long term habit of criticizing whatever I did for her, she was indeed happy about it in her heart.  Since then, changing water for the rose and trimming had become a daily routine for my mom.

妈妈说更喜欢盆花，因为盆花给呵护的人一份成长的喜悦和希望。我于是买了一盆小小的扶郎花给她。花是很艳的红色，叶子也是很绿的翠色。妈妈拿了花，仔细端详了一番，揪了揪叶子，说：“颜色真好，跟假花似的。”
Mother said she likes flowers in pot more than bouquets, as the growth of the plant brings happiness and hope for the caregiver.  Therefore, I bought a small pot of African daisy for her.  It was a scarlet color, and the leaves were fresh and green.  Mom examined the flower carefully, checked it out closely, touched the leaves here and there, commented: "Nice color, almost like fake. " :-)


我过上了吃羊肉泡馍的幸福生活。　这一碗是改良版，鸡肉泡馍。诊所的一个护士见到了我的父母，他就问我，＂你父母来，你是不是要给他们做饭？＂我回答他，＂他们做饭比我好多了，所以是他们给我做饭。＂对此文化冲击，国际友人眼中露出了十分友邦惊诧的表情。
Daddy and mommy are good cook, now I do not need to cook a single meal, but can enjoy fantastic food everyday.  A nurse in the clinic had met my parents, so he asked me, "Since your parents are here, do you cook for them? " I replied, "Although I am a good cook, my parents are much better. They actually cook for me. " What a culture shock to him. I can easily read the amazement in his eyes.

办公室的室友带来了糖果饼干让我和父母分享。糖果上面有俄文的标签。她还专门强调：“这些是给你父母的，不是给你一个人的。”嘻嘻
My officemate gave me some candies and cookies to share with my parents. There are Russian letters on the candies.  She emphasized, "These are for your parents, not just you. " I winked to her and smiled.

办公室的室友送我的圣诞礼物：一盒袋泡茶

我的玫瑰花茶喝完了，今天打开袋泡茶来喝。打开来是这样的。

室友带来饼干和糖果。

这个小鞋子也是室友送的圣诞礼物，是一满鞋子的巧克力。巧克力被我吃完了，现在装了酸梅糖。