6. The Oval Office

6 The Oval Office A half mile away, Stanley's back slammed into the dome of the Capitol with a slap. The wind was knocked out of him. For a moment, he could not even open his eyes. When he did, there were two men in black crouched over him. Stanley sat up fast, and the side of his head smacked one of them in the nose. "Ouch!" the man cried. The other one held up a badge. "Secret Service. The president wants to see you," the man panted. "You mean you're not kidnappers?" said Stanley. The men shook their heads. "You're the good guys?" Stanley said blankly. The men nodded.

半英里外，斯坦利的背重重地撞在国会大厦的圆顶上。 他喘不过气来。 有那么一会儿，他甚至无法睁开眼睛。 当他这样做的时候，有两个黑衣人蹲在他身边。 斯坦利猛地坐了起来，他的一侧脑袋打在其中一个人的鼻子上。 “哎哟!”另一个人举着一枚徽章。 “秘密服务。总统要见你，”那人喘着气说。 “你是说你们不是绑架者?”斯坦利说。 那些人摇了摇头。 “你们是好人?”斯坦利茫然地说。 男人们点点头。

Stanley flopped back down on his back. "Oops," he croaked. Stanley waited nervously in the Oval Office. At the other end of the room was a big, empty wooden desk, surrounded by windows. A portrait of George Washington looked down at him disapprovingly. Through a side door, a woman came in carrying a tray. She turned to face Stanley, and he couldn't believe his eyes. It was the president herself! "Hi there, Stanley," she said, as if they were neighbors. "You like Mexican food, don't you?" She put the tray down on a little table in front of a white couch, sat down, scooped some salsa onto a tortilla chip, and popped it into her mouth. She patted the seat beside her. Stanley didn't move. "Stanley, the president of the United States just invited you to have a nacho with her." Stanley quickly sat down. He carefully took a chip and placed it in his mouth.

斯坦利又扑通一声仰面躺了下来。 “哎呀。”他嘶哑地说。斯坦利紧张地等在椭圆形办公室里。 房间的另一端是一张空的大木桌，四周都是窗户。 乔治·华盛顿的画像不以为然地俯视着他。 一个女人端着一个托盘从侧门走了进来。 她转过身来面对斯坦利，他简直不敢相信自己的眼睛。 是总统本人!“你好，斯坦利，”她说，好像他们是邻居似的。 “你喜欢墨西哥菜，是吗?”她把托盘放在一张白色沙发前的小桌子上，坐了下来，舀了一些莎莎酱放在玉米片上，然后把它塞进嘴里。 她拍了拍旁边的座位。 斯坦利没有动。“斯坦利，美国总统刚刚邀请你和她一起吃玉米片。” 斯坦利迅速坐了下来。他小心地拿起一块薯片放进嘴里。

"Nothing works up the appetite like evading the Secret Service, huh?" the president said. Stanley swallowed. He looked at his feet awkwardly and shrugged. "You know, it was I who decided to give you the National Medal of Achievement, Stanley," said the president. "It's quite an honor. I thought you really deserved it." "Why?" "Because I think you're someone we can all look up to," she said matter-of-factly. "You mean because I'm flat?" said Stanley glumly. "No," replied the president. "Because you use what's different about you to make people all over the world realize what they have in common," she said. "You've traveled the globe, showing people that when they have the freedom to be different, they can achieve amazing things." Stanley felt himself blushing. "I haven't done anything amazing." The president raised her eyebrows. "Stanley, I'm the president of the United States of America. I've met a lot of people who have done a lot of

“没有什么比躲避特勤局更让人胃口大开的了，是吧?”总统说。 斯坦利吞下。他尴尬地看着自己的脚，耸了耸肩。 “你知道，是我决定给你颁发国家成就勋章的，斯坦利，”总统说。 “这是一种荣誉。我认为这是你应得的。” “为什么?”“因为我认为你是一个我们都可以尊敬的人，”她实事求是地说。 “你是说因为我是扁的?”斯坦利闷闷不乐地说。 “不，”庭长回答。 “因为你用自己的不同之处让全世界的人意识到他们之间的共同点，”她说。 “你环游世界，向人们展示，当他们拥有与众不同的自由时，他们可以取得惊人的成就。” 斯坦利觉得自己脸红了。 “我没有做过什么了不起的事。” 总统扬起了眉毛。 “斯坦利，我是美利坚合众国的总统。 我见过很多人他们做了很多

important things. But I don't know anyone who has saved Mount Rushmore, foiled an Egyptian antiquities thief, practiced martial arts in Japan, gone over the Canadian side of Niagara Falls without a barrel, walked across Mexico, unearthed an archaeological fraud in Africa, performed with the Flying Chinese Wonders, flown unaided across Australia—and, as of an hour ago, flapped like a flag hanging off the top of the Washington Monument while the entire world watched, glued to their televisions."

重要的事情。但我不知道有谁拯救过拉什莫尔山，阻止过埃及的文物窃贼，在日本练习过武术，不带木桶翻倒过尼亚加拉大瀑布的加拿大一侧，徒步穿越墨西哥，在非洲发现了一个考古骗局，与中国的飞行奇迹一起表演，在没有帮助的情况下飞越澳大利亚——而且，就在一个小时前，全世界都在看着他，像一面悬挂在华盛顿纪念碑顶部的旗帜一样飘扬。”

Stanley smiled. "That does sound like a lot," he admitted. "Yes, it does," the president agreed. Stanley munched some more tortilla chips. "I do have one question I have been meaning to ask you," the president said. Her face became very

斯坦利笑了。“听起来确实很多，”他承认。 “是的，确实如此，”总统表示同意。 斯坦利又嚼了一些玉米片。 “我确实有一个问题一直想问你，”总统说。 她的脸变得非常

serious. "I want you to tell me: What is La Abuela's secret ingredient?" Stanley swallowed hard. With help from the great matador Carmen del Junco, he had traveled across Mexico to discover the famous secret ingredient in La Abuela's cooking. He had sworn he would never reveal it to anyone. "I'm sorry," he stammered. "I can't tell you." "Why not?" "Because it's a secret." The president nodded thoughtfully. "That's what a hero might say." She rose and walked toward the door that Stanley had entered from. She turned back to him. "As long as you always remember La Abuela's secret, Stanley, and hold it close to your heart, you'll be fine." She winked. Stanley thought back to what he had learned in Mexico: The secret is not the ingredient. It is what you do with it. The president looked deep into his eyes, as if to say, That's why you're here, Stanley. Because of what you do with it. But how did she know?

认真的。“我想让你告诉我:‘奶奶’的秘方是什么?”斯坦利使劲咽了口气。 在伟大的斗牛士卡门·德尔·琼科的帮助下，他走遍了墨西哥去发现La Abuela烹饪中著名的秘密原料。 他发过誓决不把这件事透露给任何人。 “对不起，”他结结巴巴地说。 “我不能告诉你。”“为什么不?”“因为这是个秘密。” 总统若有所思地点了点头。 “英雄才会这么说。” 她站起身，朝斯坦利进来的那扇门走去。 她回过头来看着他。“只要你永远记住奶奶的秘密，斯坦利，把它牢记在心，你就会没事的。” 她眨了眨眼。斯坦利回想起他在墨西哥学到的东西:秘诀不在于配料。 重要的是你用它做什么。 总统深深地盯着他的眼睛，好像在说，这就是你在这里的原因，斯坦利。 因为你用它做了什么。 但她是怎么知道的?