我家楼下有一个修理铺。
Wǒ jiā lóu xià yǒu yí gè xiūlǐ pū.
Downstairs from my home there is a repair shop.
铺子不大，门口挂着一块旧牌子。
Pù zi bú dà, ménkǒu guà zhe yí kuài jiù páizi.
The shop is small, with an old sign hanging at the door.
牌子上四个字，修理一切。
Páizi shàng sì gè zì, xiūlǐ yíqiè.
On the sign are four characters: we repair everything.
师傅六十多岁了。
Shīfu liù shí duō suì le.
The repairman is over sixty.
他从年轻时就坐在这个铺子里。
Tā cóng niánqīng shí jiù zuò zài zhège pù zi lǐ.
He has sat in this shop since he was young.
铺子里的东西比外面看上去多。
Pù zi lǐ de dōngxi bǐ wàimiàn kàn shàngqù duō.
There are more things inside than you would guess from outside.
墙上挂满了工具，桌子上堆满了零件。
Qiáng shàng guà mǎn le gōngjù, zhuōzi shàng duī mǎn le língjiàn.
The walls are hung with tools, the tables piled with parts.
每一样东西他都知道放在哪里。
Měi yíyàng dōngxi tā dōu zhīdào fàng zài nǎlǐ.
He knows exactly where every single thing is kept.
电饭锅，收音机，手表，他都能修。
Diànfànguō, shōuyīnjī, shǒubiǎo, tā dōu néng xiū.
Rice cookers, radios, watches, he can fix them all.
别人扔掉的，他接过来。
Biérén rēng diào de, tā jiē guòlái.
What others throw away, he takes in.
他说，东西没有坏，只是老了。
Tā shuō, dōngxi méiyǒu huài, zhǐshì lǎo le.
He says things are not broken; they are just old.
老了的东西，得有人懂它。
Lǎo le de dōngxi, de yǒu rén dǒng tā.
Old things need someone who understands them.
就像老人，走得慢，可心里什么都清楚。
Jiù xiàng lǎorén, zǒu de màn, kě xīnlǐ shénme dōu qīngchu.
Like old people: slow on their feet, but clear about everything inside.
懂，就要花时间。
Dǒng, jiù yào huā shíjiān.
And understanding takes time.
我搬家来那年，认识了他。
Wǒ bānjiā lái nà nián, rènshi le tā.
I got to know him the year I moved here.
家里的电饭锅坏了，我提了下去。
Jiā lǐ de diànfànguō huài le, wǒ tí le xiàqù.
Our rice cooker broke, and I carried it downstairs.
他拆开看了看，换了一个小零件。
Tā chāi kāi kàn le kàn, huàn le yí gè xiǎo língjiàn.
He took it apart, had a look, and replaced a small part.
收了我五块钱。
Shōu le wǒ wǔ kuài qián.
He charged me five yuan.
我说太便宜了，他摆摆手。
Wǒ shuō tài piányi le, tā bǎi bǎi shǒu.
I said it was too cheap, and he waved his hand.
从那以后，我家坏了的东西都提下去。
Cóng nà yǐhòu, wǒ jiā huài le de dōngxi dōu tí xiàqù.
From then on, whatever broke in our home went downstairs.
妻子的一把旧伞坏了，我本想扔掉。
Qīzi de yì bǎ jiù sǎn huài le, wǒ běn xiǎng rēng diào.
When my wife's old umbrella broke, I meant to throw it away.
他修好了，伞又能用了，和新的一样。
Tā xiū hǎo le, sǎn yòu néng yòng le, hé xīn de yíyàng.
He fixed it, and it worked again, as good as new.
这把伞如今还挂在我家门口。
Zhè bǎ sǎn rújīn hái guà zài wǒ jiā ménkǒu.
That umbrella still hangs by our door today.
孩子摔坏了玩具，也拿到他那里去。
Háizi shuāi huài le wánjù, yě ná dào tā nàlǐ qù.
When the child broke a toy, we took it to him too.
铺子里的生意，这几年淡了。
Pù zi lǐ de shēngyi, zhè jǐ nián dàn le.
Business in the shop has thinned these past few years.
东西便宜了，坏了就扔，是很多人的习惯。
Dōngxi piányi le, huài le jiù rēng, shì hěn duō rén de xíguàn.
Things are cheap now, and throwing them out when they break is many people's habit.
年轻人来问修手机多少钱。
Niánqīng rén lái wèn xiū shǒujī duōshao qián.
Young people come and ask how much it costs to fix a phone.
一听要五十块，转身就去买新的。
Yì tīng yào wǔ shí kuài, zhuǎnshēn jiù qù mǎi xīn de.
Hearing it will be fifty yuan, they turn around and go buy a new one.
师傅也不留他们。
Shīfu yě bù liú tāmen.
The repairman does not try to keep them.
他说，新的好，新的亮。
Tā shuō, xīn de hǎo, xīn de liàng.
He says, new is good, new is shiny.
可是他的手，还是每天把旧东西一件件拆开。
Kěshì tā de shǒu, háishi měi tiān bǎ jiù dōngxi yí jiàn jiàn chāi kāi.
Yet his hands still take old things apart piece by piece every day.
洗干净，上好油，装回去。
Xǐ gānjìng, shàng hǎo yóu, zhuāng huíqù.
He cleans them, oils them, and puts them back together.
装回去的东西交到主人手里，还能再用好几年。
Zhuāng huíqù de dōngxi jiāo dào zhǔrén shǒu lǐ, hái néng zài yòng hǎo jǐ nián.
Back in its owner’s hands, a reassembled thing can serve for years more.
来修东西的多是老人。
Lái xiū dōngxi de duō shì lǎorén.
Most of the people who come for repairs are old.
老人的东西老，舍不得扔。
Lǎorén de dōngxi lǎo, shěbude rēng.
Old people's things are old, and they cannot bear to throw them out.
他们坐下来，修东西，也说说话。
Tāmen zuò xiàlái, xiū dōngxi, yě shuō shuōhuà.
They sit down, and while things get fixed, they talk.
一个老太太拿来一台旧收音机。
Yí gè lǎotàitai ná lái yì tái jiù shōuyīnjī.
One old woman brought in an old radio.
是她丈夫留下的，好几年不响了。
Shì tā zhàngfu liúxia de, hǎo jǐ nián bù xiǎng le.
Her late husband had left it to her, and it had been silent for years.
师傅修了三个下午。
Shīfu xiū le sān gè xiàwǔ.
The repairman worked on it for three afternoons.
收音机又响的那天，老太太哭了。
Shōuyīnjī yòu xiǎng de nà tiān, lǎotàitai kū le.
The day the radio sounded again, the old woman cried.
她坐在铺子里，听了一个下午的戏。
Tā zuò zài pù zi lǐ, tīng le yí gè xiàwǔ de xì.
She sat in the shop and listened to opera all afternoon.
师傅没有收她的钱。
Shīfu méiyǒu shōu tā de qián.
The repairman did not take her money.
他说，能再听见，就不算白修。
Tā shuō, néng zài tīngjiàn, jiù bú suàn bái xiū.
He said, since she could hear it again, the repair was not in vain.
这样的事，在他的铺子里常有。
Zhèyàng de shì, zài tā de pù zi lǐ cháng yǒu.
Things like this happened often in his shop.
他记得每一台修过的机器，也记得机器后面的人。
Tā jìde měi yì tái xiū guò de jīqì, yě jìde jīqì hòumiàn de rén.
He remembered every machine he had fixed, and the people behind the machines.
去年，这条街要改造的消息来了。
Qùnián, zhè tiáo jiē yào gǎizào de xiāoxi lái le.
Last year came the news that this street would be rebuilt.
一家一家的小店都搬走了。
Yì jiā yì jiā de xiǎo diàn dōu bān zǒu le.
One by one, the small shops moved away.
理发的小张走了，做衣服的也走了。
Lǐfà de xiǎo zhāng zǒu le, zuò yīfu de yě zǒu le.
Little Zhang the barber left, and the tailor left too.
最后只剩下师傅的铺子。
Zuìhòu zhī shèng xià shīfu de pù zi.
In the end only the repairman's shop remained.
管理这条街的人问他什么时候搬。
Guǎnlǐ zhè tiáo jiē de rén wèn tā shénme shíhou bān.
The people managing the street asked when he would move.
他说，等我修完手上这几件。
Tā shuō, děng wǒ xiū wán shǒu shàng zhè jǐ jiàn.
He said, wait until I finish the few pieces on my bench.
那些天，邻居们都把家里的旧东西找出来。
Nàxiē tiān, línjū men dōu bǎ jiā lǐ de jiù dōngxi zhǎo chūlái.
Those days, the neighbors all dug out their old things.
能修的，都送到他那里去。
Néng xiū de, dōu sòng dào tā nàlǐ qù.
Whatever could be fixed was carried to him.
铺子门口排起了队，像很多年前一样。
Pù zi ménkǒu pái qǐ le duì, xiàng hěn duō nián qián yíyàng.
A line formed at the shop door, just like many years ago.
他也高兴，天天忙到天黑。
Tā yě gāoxìng, tiān tiān máng dào tiān hēi.
He was happy too, busy until dark every day.
他说，忙好，忙说明还有人要修。
Tā shuō, máng hǎo, máng shuōmíng hái yǒu rén yào xiū.
He said busy is good; busy means people still need repairs.
只要还有人要修，他的铺子就不算白开。
Zhǐyào hái yǒu rén yào xiū, tā de pù zi jiù bú suàn bái kāi.
As long as someone still needs repairs, his shop is not open in vain.
上个月，铺子到底还是关了。
Shàng gè yuè, pù zi dàodǐ háishi guān le.
Last month, in the end, the shop closed all the same.
关门前一天，他把门口的旧牌子取下来。
Guān mén qián yì tiān, tā bǎ ménkǒu de jiù páizi qǔ xiàlái.
The day before closing, he took down the old sign at the door.
擦干净了，包起来，带回了家。
Cā gānjìng le, bāo qǐlái, dài huí le jiā.
He wiped it clean, wrapped it up, and took it home.
那四个字跟了他一辈子，他舍不得留给别人。
Nà sì gè zì gēn le tā yíbèizi, tā shěbude liú gěi biérén.
Those four characters had followed him all his life; he could not bear to leave them to anyone else.
现在那里已经换成了一家新店。
Xiànzài nàlǐ yǐjīng huàn chéng le yì jiā xīn diàn.
Now a new shop has taken the place.
卖的都是新东西，没有人修东西。
Mài de dōu shì xīn dōngxi, méiyǒu rén xiū dōngxi.
It sells all new things, and nobody repairs anything.
灯很亮，亮得看不见旧东西。
Dēng hěn liàng, liàng de kàn bújiàn jiù dōngxi.
The lights are bright, too bright to see anything old.
我路过那里，总会放慢脚步，朝里面看一眼。
Wǒ lùguò nàlǐ, zǒng huì fàng màn jiǎobù, cháo lǐmiàn kàn yì yǎn.
When I pass that spot, I always slow down and glance inside.
我家那个电饭锅，前天又坏了。
Wǒ jiā nàge diànfànguō, qiántiān yòu huài le.
Our rice cooker broke again the day before yesterday.
妻子说，扔了吧，买个新的。
Qīzi shuō, rēng le ba, mǎi gè xīn de.
My wife said, throw it out and buy a new one.
我提着锅下楼，站了一会儿。
Wǒ tí zhe guō xià lóu, zhàn le yíhuìr.
I carried the cooker downstairs and stood there for a while.
又把它提了上来。
Yòu bǎ tā tí le shànglái.
Then I carried it back up.
锅不重，我的手却一直在抖。
Guō bù chóng, wǒ de shǒu què yìzhí zài dǒu.
The cooker was not heavy, but my hands kept shaking.
它现在还放在厨房的角落里。
Tā xiànzài hái fàng zài chúfáng de jiǎoluò lǐ.
It still sits in the corner of the kitchen now.
我总觉得，哪天师傅会回来。
Wǒ zǒng juéde, nǎ tiān shīfu huì huílái.
I keep feeling that one day the repairman will come back.
妻子说我想得美。
Qīzi shuō wǒ xiǎng de měi.
My wife says I am dreaming.
他推开门，挂上那块旧牌子。
Tā tuī kāi mén, guà shàng nà kuài jiù páizi.
He will push open the door and hang up that old sign.
牌子上还是那四个字，修理一切。
Páizi shàng háishi nà sì gè zì, xiūlǐ yíqiè.
And on the sign will be the same four characters: we repair everything.
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