91 The Epilogue

THE EPILOGUE Autumn had returned to Hilltop Farm. The pasture was coated with frost, but the cows were out there, grazing on the last few tufts of fresh grass. Soon, they'd stroll up to the parlor for another milking. Their routine never changed. Mr. Shareef was sitting in his pickup truck with his dog. The man stared out the window, across the fields, at the new robot. He was keeping a close eye on her. TechLab had promised him this one wouldn't run away, but he didn't trust her yet. These days, the children spent most of their free time working on the farm. Jaya had a way with the cows. Jad liked the tools and the machines. They were walking through the farm buildings together when they heard honking sounds in the sky and a flock of geese glided down to the pond. For weeks, geese had been stopping by on their migrations. But there was something different about this flock. They flew in perfect formation, and they were led by a small, graceful goose.

山头农场又回到了秋天。 牧场上结了一层霜，但奶牛在外面，吃着最后几簇新鲜的草。 很快，他们又溜达到客厅去挤奶。 他们的日常生活从未改变。 谢里夫和他的狗坐在他的皮卡车里。 那人凝视着窗外田野对面的新机器人。 他一直密切注视着她。 科技实验室曾向他保证过这只狗不会跑掉，但他还不相信她。 这些天，孩子们把大部分空闲时间都花在了农场上。 贾亚对付奶牛很有一套。 贾德喜欢这些工具和机器。 他们一起穿过农场的建筑物，这时他们听到天空中的喇叭声，一群鹅滑翔到池塘里。 几个星期以来，大雁一直在迁徙途中路过这里。 但这群人有些不同。 它们排成完美的队形飞行，由一只优雅的小鹅领头。

The flock calmly floated on the water. After a while, the leader shook his tail feathers, beat his wings, and fluttered over to Jaya and Jad. The goose stood in front of the children. He gazed deep into their eyes. Then he craned his neck around, plucked out one of his feathers, and laid it on the ground by their feet. Jaya and Jad looked at each other and smiled. The children had been waiting for this moment. They'd always wanted to know how Roz's story would end. And now they finally knew. The wild robot was back where she belonged.

羊群平静地漂浮在水面上。 过了一会儿，领袖抖了抖尾羽，拍了拍翅膀，飞到贾亚和贾德那里。 那只鹅站在孩子们面前。 他深深地凝视着他们的眼睛。 然后他伸长脖子，拔下一根羽毛，放在他们脚边的地上。 贾亚和杰德相视一笑。 孩子们一直在等待这一刻。 他们一直想知道罗兹的故事会如何结束。 现在他们终于知道了。 狂野的机器人回到了属于她的地方。

A NOTE ABOUT THE STORY What would an intelligent robot do stranded in the wilderness? How might a robot adapt to the natural environment? Could a robot ever be truly wild? Those are some of the questions that inspired me to create a character named Roz, and to write my first novel for children, The Wild Robot. But I had more questions. What would happen if Roz were taken away from the wilderness? How might the wild robot react to normal robots and to humans? Could she ever fit into the civilized world? The questions kept coming, and yet there was one question that I returned to again and again. Where does the wild robot truly belong? Does Roz belong on the island where she spent her first year of life? Or does she belong in civilization, working for humans, alongside other robots? I imagined her feeling torn between the natural world and the civilized world. I also imagined, if given the choice, Roz would choose to live with her wild

一个被困在荒野中的智能机器人会做什么？ 机器人如何适应自然环境？ 机器人能真正狂野吗？ 这些问题启发了我创造了一个名叫罗兹的角色，并创作了我的第一部儿童小说《野生机器人》。 但我有更多的问题。如果把罗兹从荒野中带走会发生什么？ 野性机器人对普通机器人和人类会有什么反应？ 她能融入文明世界吗？ 问题不断涌来，但有一个问题是我反复思考的。 野生机器人真正属于哪里？ 罗兹属于她出生第一年生活的那个岛吗？ 还是她属于文明社会，和其他机器人一起为人类工作？ 我想象她在自然世界和文明世界之间感到进退两难。 我也想象，如果可以选择，罗兹会选择和她的狂野生活在一起

animal friends and family. But would she have a choice? Obviously, I needed to explore these ideas by writing a sequel in which Roz finds her way back home. The story had to be filled with heart and soul and action and science and even a little philosophy. I had to develop new characters and settings. And everything had to take place in the future, of course. This new story was tricky, like a puzzle where all the pieces had to fit together perfectly in order for the whole thing to work. I read expert predictions of what our future might look like. I studied robotics and automation and artificial intelligence. I began to envision a futuristic society where humans live comfortably thanks to the tireless work of robots. And there was Roz, in the middle of that society, using her wildness in new ways, to escape from her new life and return to her old one. The puzzle pieces started fitting together, and after several years of researching and thinking and writing and illustrating, I finally had my second novel for children, The Wild Robot Escapes.

动物朋友和家人。 但她还有别的选择吗？ 显然，我需要通过写一个续集来探索这些想法，在这个续集中，Roz找到了回家的路。 这个故事必须充满情感、灵魂、行动、科学，甚至一点哲学。 我必须创造新的角色和场景。 当然，一切都必须发生在未来。 这个新故事很棘手，就像一个拼图，所有的碎片必须完美地组合在一起，才能让整个故事发挥作用。 我读过专家对我们未来的预测。 我学的是机器人、自动化和人工智能。 我开始设想一个未来的社会，由于机器人不知疲倦的工作，人类生活舒适。 还有罗兹，在那个社会的中间，以新的方式利用她的野性，逃离她的新生活，回到她的旧生活。 拼图开始拼凑起来，经过几年的研究、思考、写作和插图，我终于有了我的第二本儿童小说《野机器人逃亡》。