Better Late Than Never 亡羊补牢，犹未为晚
Papa's jaw dropped when Mama told him that Sister had cheated on her final exams-not to succeed but to fail.“It's unbelievable！”he said.Sister has always been so proud of her good grades！
“Yes，she has，”said Mama.“But it's not unbelievable.It just shows how badly she wanted off the swimming team.”“Wanted off the swimming team？”said Papa.“She never said anything about that to me.”“Of course she didn't，”said Mama.“She was afraid you'd blow your top.You already had her getting a swimming scholarship to college and winning gold medals at the Olympics.Can you imagine how much pressure she must have felt？For her，being on the team couldn't have been much fun.”
“Oh，my gosh！”Papa said，clapping a hand to his forehead.“I've been so stupid！I just thought she'd want to be a champion swimmer because she's so good at it.”“It's like anything else，dear，”said Mama.“No matter how good at it you are，if it stops being fun，you won't want to do it anymore.”Papa put his head in his hands.“She must be really mad at me，”he mumbled.“Maybe I should say sorry to her.”
Sister's footsteps could be heard on the stairs.She came into the kitchen and looked hopefully up at her parents.“Honey，”said Mama with a smile，“Your Papa and I have decided that there's no reason for you to be on the swimming team if you don't want to.”Sister's face lit up like a Christmas tree.“Yippee！”she cried.“And，”added Papa，“there's no need for any more drills.I'm sure you'll bring your grades back up all by yourself.”Sister ran to Papa and jumped into his arms.She gave him a big hug.“I'm going to go play cards with Lizzy！”she said.“See you later！”
From the kitchen window，Mama and Papa watched their daughter run down the sunny road toward Lizzy's house.“It's good to see her happy again，”said Mama.“It sure is，”Papa agreed.“As for the swimming team，there's always next year.”“If？”Mama prompted him.“Oh，right，”said Papa.“If she wants to.”Mama smiled.“At least you're learning，dear，”she said.She kissed him.“Well，you know what they say，”Papa said.“Better late than never.”
当妈妈告诉爸爸说，姐姐为了搞砸期末考试而故意作弊的时候，他惊得下巴差点掉下来。“不可能！”他说。姐姐一向都以她的好分数为傲！
“那倒是真的，”妈妈说，“但这也不是让人难以相信的事儿，这表明她是多么的想退出游泳队。”“退出游泳队？”爸爸迷惑了，“她从来没有跟我提过这事。”“她当然没有，”妈妈接着说，“她害怕你会气极了。你已经要她靠游泳奖学金进大学，还要在奥运会上赢金牌。你能想象她感到多大的压力吗？对她来说，在队里呆着不可能有那么多乐趣的。”
“哦，天哪！”爸爸叹道，一只手拍打着前额，“我一直太傻了！我以为她会想成为一个游泳冠军，她游得那么好。”“就像其他任何事一样，亲爱的，”妈妈劝他说，“不管你在某件事情上多么有天赋，如果它不能再给你带来乐趣，你就再也不想干了。”爸爸双手抱头，喃喃道，“她肯定很生我的气；也许我该跟她说声对不起。”
台阶上响起了姐姐的脚步声。她来到厨房，期待地看着父母。“宝贝儿，”妈妈微笑着说，“我和你爸爸决定，如果你自己不想，那就没有什么理由要你留在游泳队。”姐姐的脸像圣诞树般被瞬间点亮。“啊！”她开心地叫了起来。“而且，”爸爸接着说，“也不用再做那么多练习了，我相信你自己会把分数提升回来。”姐姐跑向爸爸，跳到他怀里，给了他一个大大的拥抱，“我要和丽姿去玩扑克！呆会儿见！”
透过厨房窗户，妈妈和爸爸看着他们的女儿沿着撒满阳光的道路跑向丽姿家。“看到她重新变得快乐真是太好了，”妈妈说。“是啊，”爸爸附和道，“至于游泳队嘛，总会有下一年。”“如果？”妈妈提示着他，“哦，对，如果她愿意的话。”他答道。妈妈笑了，“至少你在学，亲爱的”，吻了他一下。“唉，你知道他们怎么说的，”爸爸说，“亡羊补牢，犹为未晚。”
译者感言
想起了刺猬冬天凑在一起取暖的故事，距离太远，没有温度，距离太近，又会扎到彼此，合适的距离是关键。爱也是如此，予对方无微不至的关怀和照顾，可能招致对方的反感；对对方的希望和要求，即使合情合理，也可能让对方感到窒息。彼此保留一些空间吧，真诚适度的爱才经得起生活的打磨，并会随着时间的累积愈发让人感到温暖和珍贵。身为父母，爱子心切是自然，但请记住，孩子也是独立的生命个体。尊重他们的想法，理解他们的感情吧，因为攥得太紧，他会扭曲，甚至背离；伸开手掌，让他自由，也许他会飞走，可是不会真正远离，他会把心的一部分永远放在你的掌心。
