single exception, and I realized that no one faces death without fear; no one is immune to its terror.
我看了看这些出门公干的旅伴们，惊讶地发现他们已经神色大变。此时许多人显然吓坏了。甚至那些饱经世故的人们也显得神经脆弱、神情严肃。他们其实已经慌神了。无一例外！由此，我意识到面对死神谁都害怕——无人能免俗。
8 Then, somewhere in my proximity, I overheard a still calm voice underlying the panic. It was a woman's voice, speaking in an absolutely normal conversational tone. Despite the circumstance, there was no angry emotion or tension, and this calm voice evoked a calm in me that quieted some of my initial fears. It became imperative that I find her.
就在此时，在我附近某个地方，我听到一个淹没在恐慌之中的依旧从容的声音。这是一位女性的声音，说话语调完全就像普通聊天一样正常。尽管形势危急，这个平静的声音既没有愤怒之情也没有紧张，唤醒了我内心的镇静，抚平了我最初的恐惧。我急需找到她。
9 All around the cabin, people cried. Many moaned and screamed. A few of the men maintained their appearance of calm by bracing against their armrests and grinding their teeth, but their fear was written all over them.
整个机舱都是人们的哭喊声。许多人呻吟着、尖叫着。几个男人死死撑住座位扶手，咬紧牙关，竭力保持镇静，但是浑身上下都透出惶恐。
10 Try as I might, I could not have spoken so calmly, so sweetly at that moment as the fabulous voice I heard. Finally, I saw her.
尽管我竭尽全力，但此刻我怎么也不可能像我听到的那个美妙的声音那样，讲话如此镇定、如此动听。终于，我看到了她。
11 In the midst of all the chaos, a mother was talking, just talking to her child. The woman, in her mid-30's and unremarkable looking in any other way, was staring full into the face of her daughter, who looked about four years old. The child listened closely, sensing that her mother's words were invaluable. The mother's gaze held the child so fixed and intent that the child seemed untouched by the sounds of grief and fear all around her.
混乱之中，一位母亲正在讲话，她就只对着自己的孩子讲。这名妇女35岁左右，无论怎么看都相貌平平。她正目不转睛地盯着女儿的脸，女儿看起来大约四岁。孩子仔细聆听，意识到母亲的话语的分量。母亲凝视的目光让孩子听得聚精会神，似乎一点也不为周围人们哀伤和惊恐的声音所动。
12 I strained to hear what this mother was telling her child. I relished the sound of calm confidence amongst the terror. Finally, I hovered nearby and by some miracle could hear her soft, sure, confident voice say in a calming tone over and over again, "I love you so much. Do you know for sure that I love you more than anything?"
我竭力想听清这位母亲在跟孩子讲些什么。我喜欢这恐惧中的淡定之声。最后，我凑得近了些。幸运的是，我听清了这温柔、沉着而自信的声音。她用平静的语调一遍遍地说：“我十分爱你。你相信我爱你胜过一切么？”
13 "Yes, Mommy," the little girl said.
“是的，妈咪，”小姑娘答道。
14 "And remember, no matter what happens, that I love you always; and that you are a good girl. Sometimes things happen that are not your fault. You are my beloved, good girl and my love will always be with you."
“不管发生什么事情，都要记住我永远爱你，你是个好孩子。有些事情的发生并不是你的错。你是我的乖女儿，我的爱将永远伴随着你。”
15 As her first concern was for her daughter's well-being, the mother then put her body over her daughter's, strapping the seat belt over both of them to save her daughter from a possible wreckage.
母亲首先心系女儿的安危，她俯身挡在女儿身上，用安全带系住她们俩人，以免女儿被可能的失事残片所伤。
16 Then, for no earthly reason, our landing gear held and we glided to a gentle stop. It was all over in seconds. Our
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