There was something wrong with this man.
我觉得那个男人有点不对劲。
He didn’t call me Toby. He didn’t even talk to us.
他不会叫我托比,他甚至都不和我们说话。
I thought of my first mother, the very last time I saw her, escaping the Yard because she couldn’t live with humans,
我想起了我的第一个母亲,想起我最后一次见到她的情景。她逃离了院子,因为她不能和人类一起生活,
not even with someone as loving as Senora.
即使和像夫人这样有爱心的人在一起也不行。
But the man didn’t love us at all. My gaze focused on the doorknob in the gate.
但是这个男人根本不爱我们。我的目光聚焦在大门的门把手上。
There was a wooden table next to the door.
门旁边有一张木桌。
By climbing up on a stool I was able to get on the table,
爬上凳子之后,我就能爬上桌子,
and from there I was just able to stretch out and put my mouth on the metal knob, which instead of being round was a strip of metal, a handle.
踩上桌子之后,我就可以用嘴咬住那个金属把手。不过那个金属把手不是圆形的,是一个金属条形的把手。
My tiny teeth weren’t very useful in getting a purchase on the thing,
我的牙齿太小,在那个把手面前派不上什么用场,
but I did my best to manipulate it the way Mother had the night she fled from the Yard.
但我尽我所能去控制那个把手它,就像母亲从院子里逃出来的那天晚上一样。
Soon I lost my balance and toppled to the ground, the gate still locked.
很快,我失去了平衡,摔倒在地,还是没打开大门。
I sat and barked at it in frustration, my voice a tiny yip.
我沮丧地坐着,对着门吼叫,但我的声音太小了。
My brothers and sisters raced over to jump on me in their usual fashion, but I turned from them in irritation. I was in no mood to play!
我的兄弟姐妹们照例跑过来扑向我,但我烦躁地转过身去,没有理睬他们。我现在可没有心情玩!
I tried it again. This time I put my front paws on the knob to keep from tumbling to the ground,
我又试了一次。这次我把我的前爪放在门把手上,以免摔到地上,
and as I did so it fell away beneath me, so that my whole body hit the lever on my way down. I landed on the sidewalk with a grunt.
当我这样做的时候,门把手就从我的下面往下掉,所以我整个身体也在下移过程中碰到了控制杆。我嗷的一声掉在了人行道上。
To my astonishment, the gate edged ajar. I shoved my nose into the crack and pushed, and it swung wider. I was free!
使我吃惊的是,门徐徐开了一半。我把鼻子塞进缝隙里推了推,门就开得更大了。我自由了!
I eagerly scampered out into the open, my little legs tripping over themselves.
我迫不及待地跑到空地上,我的小短腿儿还跑不利索。
A dirt path lay right in front of me, two tracks dug into sandy soil. I instinctively knew that was the way to go.
我面前有一条土路,土路上可见两道印记。我本能地知道这就是我要走的路。