【Perez公器私用練英文013】
Letter to My Brother給阿弟的信
原文網址：https://www.theplayerstribune.com/posts/endrick-palmeiras-brazil-football
發文時間：2024/03/25
文章作者：Endrick Felipe Moreira de Sousa, FORWARD.Dear Noah,
I love you. This is the first thing, above everything else.
親愛的諾亞，我愛你。這是超過一切的首要之事。
Since day one, I feel that we’ve had a special connection. I have never told you this, but when you were about to be born, you actually waited for me to score a goal.
從第一天起，我就能感覺到我們有著特殊的連結。我從沒跟你說過這件事，但隨著你出生的時間將近，你真的在等待我的進球得分再誕生。
It’s true, brother. I was playing an important match at the time, just 13 years old, but you did not want to enter this world yet. The clock ticked and ticked, and Mom and Dad were wondering what you were waiting for. Then all of a sudden Dad got a call from his friend who was at the game.
阿弟，這是真的。那個時候我才十三歲，正在打一場對那時候的我重要的比賽，但那時你還不願降生到這世界。時間滴答，阿爸阿母都在懷疑你在等待什麼。一個瞬間，阿爸接到了他來看那場比賽的朋友捎來的電話。
He said, “Douglas!! Douglas!! Endrick just scored!!”
他說：「道格拉斯！道格拉斯！恩德里克得分啦！」
And then at that exact moment, all you heard in the hospital room was
Wwwwwwaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!
說時遲那時快，醫院產房Wwwwwwaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh迴盪不已！！！
You finally came out to celebrate with me. When I got to the hospital, I gave you a birthday gi
ft. I didn’t have any money for a toy, but I got you the golden ball from the tournament.
你終於誕生，與我一同慶祝。當我來到醫院時，我給了你一份生日禮物，我沒有買禮物的錢，但我給了你那個系列賽的金球獎。
You see? In our family, we weren’t born into wealth. We were born into football.
你發現了嗎？在我們家，我們不為財富埋首而生，我們為足球埋首而生。
I don’t know when you will be reading this letter, but right now you are four years old, and our lives are changing very fast. In the next few months, I am going to Spain to play for Real Madrid — yes, the team that I always pick on PlayStation when you watch me. I know that the world will want to know about our family’s story. And it’s a crazy story, brother! So this is my chance to tell it to you as it really happened, and with Mom and Dad here to help me.
我不知道你何時會讀到這封信，但現在的你才四歲，而我們的生活正在快速轉變。接下來幾個月後，我將前往西班牙為皇家馬德里出賽──嗯嗯，就是那個你看我在打PS的時候我老是會選的那支隊伍。我知道這個世界會想知道我們一家的故事。
這可是個瘋狂的故事啊阿弟！所以這是我告訴你真實故事的機會，阿爸阿母也會在此協助我闡述。
As you know, in our family it always starts and ends with a ball. Mom says that when I was a baby, I never ever did a vvvrroooooom!!! like you. If you gave me a toy, I would hold it for five seconds and then put it right back in the box. All I wanted was “baw, baw baw, baw.”
如你所知，我們一家從始至終都跟球息息相關。阿母說我是個嬰兒的時候，從來不會像你一樣「唔唔唔！」地叫。如果你塞給我玩具，我會握著它幾秒鐘然後即刻把它塞回玩具箱。我只想要「糗~~丘!糗~~秋!」
A ball of tape. A sock. A basketball. It didn’t matter. If it was round, or even square, I wanted to kick it. When I was given the Brazuca World Cup ball from Dad’s team at the várzea, I used to just stare at the colors, like it was a painting. I used to sleep with it! It’s in our blood, brother.
膠帶貼成的球、襪子貼成的球、籃球，都沒關係。只要他是圓的，甚至是方的，我就會想要踢踢它。當我從阿爸在várzea隊拿到巴西世界盃用球的時候，我就會凝視它的繽紛顏色，像是在繪畫一樣──我甚至會跟著它一起睡覺！足球就流淌在我們血液中，阿弟。
You can ask Mom how I used to introduce myself to people.
你可以問阿母，我以前怎麼跟人自我介紹。
“And what’s your name, kid?”
「小朋友，你叫什麼名字啊？」
“Endrick Felipe Moreira de Sousa, FORWARD.”
「恩德里克˙菲力佩˙莫雷拉˙德索沙，前！鋒！」
They would laugh at me, you know? What a cute little kid.
你知道嗎？他們會笑我，這小孩還真可愛。
But brother, I meant it.
但阿弟，我是認真的。
I was convinced that I would make it, and Mom still cries when she remembers that.
我說服我自己我作得到，至今每當阿母想起這件事的時候，她仍會為此掉淚。
She always did say that words have power.
她總是會說出那些有著力量的話。
Back then, we didn’t live in a fancy apartment like we do now. We didn’t have a fridge full of the yogurts that you love so much. We lived in a place called Vila Guaíra, and our life was very different. You will hear all about our life from others in the years to come, and they will say that it was all pain and misery. But the truth is that I lived an amazing childhood, thanks to God, and thanks to everything that Mom and Dad sacrificed. And thanks to football, of course.
回到當時，我們並不住在現在這座新潮的公寓。我們家還沒有你愛的那座裝滿優格的冰箱。我們住在一個叫古阿以拉村的地方，當時我們的生活截然不同。接下來的日子你將會從別人口中聽到我們家的過去，會說那是滿滿的愁雲慘霧。但事實是，感謝上帝，我有個超讚的童年，也要感謝阿母阿爸犧牲的一切，然後當然，謝謝足球。
I don’t think I’ve told you this, but when I was around your age, our street was on this hill. We used to play football there with all the guys in the neighbourhood, and part of the reason we got so good is that if the ball rolled down the hill, the one who missed the goal was the one who had to go chase it all the way down into the favela below. So you ran past a player, you missed a chance, and then you had to run even harder to catch the ball before it rolled to the bottom.
我好像沒跟你說過，但我在你這個年紀的時候，我們家就在這座小丘上(古阿以拉村)。我們曾經會跟所有左鄰右舍踢足球，當球滾下小丘的時候，那個射丟球的人就要負責去把球從下坡追回來──這大概是為什麼我們球技好的一部份原因。所以當你過了一個球員又把機會搞砸的時候，你就得在那顆球直墜山底之前，花上更多的力氣把它追回來。
It was exhausting, but the rules on the street were very clear.
這累得要死。但是街頭足球的鐵律寫得清清楚楚。
You miss? You run.
你搞砸的球？那你跑去撿啊。
I miss that time a lot, when I was just a kid and football was just a game, when we were friends sitting around and having a good chat … resenha, as we call it. I really wish you and I could have experienced those days together, brother.
我深深想念那段時間，當我還是孩童，而足球只是遊戲的日子；當我跟左鄰右舍還是朋友然後可以好好聊天的日子......我們都說這個叫作「點評」。我真心希望我們可以一起體驗那段日子，阿弟。
When I think about it, I am happy and sad at the same time. Good memories that I can never go back to, you know?
Even the bad memories, they are sometimes sweet.
當我想到那段時間，我同時感到歡喜與哀愁。那是我記憶中再也回不去的美好日子，你可了解嗎？
就算是糟糕的往事，記憶中的它們，有時也冒出了甜美。
When you grow up, you’re going to hear this story about “the conversation on the couch.” They already talk about it in Brazil, but most people get it wrong. They say that we were poor, that we didn’t have any food, but that’s not true. They don’t know Mom, you know? She always tells people, “I’m too much of a woman to let my kids go without food.”
當你長大以後，你就會從別人那邊聽聞，關於「沙發上的對話」的故事。世人在巴西已經對此侃侃而談，但大部分的人並不清楚事實是什麼。他們說我們很窮、我們沒東西吃，但那並非事實。他們不了解阿母，你知道嗎？阿母總是跟大家說，「我太有女性思維了，可沒辦法讓我小孩沒東西吃！」
What is true is that I saw Dad cry that day. As a 10-year-old kid, I think it was the first time in my life that I understood that our situation was difficult.
事實上，那天我看到阿爸哭了。作為一個十歲的孩子，那是我人生第一次，感覺到我們家的處境有多艱難。
At our table, we always had enough for what we needed.
But we did not always have enough for what we wanted.
Do you understand the difference?
我們家的餐桌上，我們所需要的總是充足；
但我們所想要的，倒不總是充足。
你懂這之間的差別嗎？
We were always scraping by on the bare minimum. Dad says that I sat on the couch and told him, “Don’t worry. I’m gonna become a footballer, and I’m gonna take us out of this situation.”
我們家總僅僅在最低需求維生。老爸說我會坐在沙發上跟他說：「別擔心，我會變成足球員，然後讓大家脫離這個環境！」
Before that day, I was just a kid, and football was just a game.
After that day, football became our way to a better life.
那天前，我只是個把足球當成遊戲的小孩。
那天後，足球成為我們人生的翻身之道。
A few weeks later, I left for the city of São Paulo to go to the academy at Palmeiras, and I set my first goal: To make a better situation for our family.
幾個禮拜以後，我離開了聖保羅市來到來到帕爾梅拉斯的青訓學院，定下了我的第一個目標：讓我們家的環境更好。
Goals are a big part of my life. It is my way of talking to God. When I left for Palmeiras, I knew that I would have at least two or three meals a day at school and training. Unfortunately, for Mom, it was not so simple….
進球是我人生中的一大部分，那是我跟上帝對話的方式。當我離開家鄉前往帕爾梅拉斯，我知道我在學校跟訓練的日子一天會有兩到三餐，但對阿母來說，就沒那麼簡單了......
She left behind her life back home to support my dream in São Paulo. The club only had space for me, but she said there was no way I was going without her. Dad stayed behind to work and send us money, and she moved in with me in a little house together with some of my teammates. Everybody under one roof. But when we went out to train, she had nobody to talk to. We didn’t have a TV or internet in the house, so she used to take her Bible to the park and sit and talk to God all by herself. All she really had in that place was a chair. She would put her bag on it, and when we went to bed, she would sleep on a little mattress on the floor.
她在聖保羅用她的人生歲月作為我圓夢的後盾。球會只提供我的照顧名額，但阿母堅持，我的身邊不能沒有她。阿爸在家鄉工作然後寄錢給我們，而阿母搬來一棟小屋，跟我和我的一些隊友一起住。
大家都住在同一個屋簷下。但當我們前去訓練時，她就沒人可以說話了。那棟房子裡我們沒有電視或網路，因此她會拿起她的聖經，前往公園，找個地方坐下並自己與上帝對話。她在那裡除了一張椅子以外孓然一身。她會把包包放在椅子上，而當我們上床酣然入夢時，她則會睡在地板鋪著的小張床墊上。
I know it’s hard for you to imagine Mom sleeping on the floor, but this is the truth. This actually happened.
我知道你可能很難想像老媽睡在地板上，但這是真實發生的事實。
Sometimes Mom would literally be counting our last change. Dad was sending us money, but these were the days before Pix, when you couldn’t send money instantly, and it would take a day or two to go through. On the good days, when the money came through, Mom would cook sausages for the other boys. But most days, we only had enough to feed ourselves, and she felt so guilty cooking in the house, because they could smell the meat cooking, and they would ask if there was any for them, too…. What could she say? There was nothing left.
有時候阿母會認真清點我們還剩多少零錢。阿爸會寄錢過來，但當時還沒有Pix(巴西中央銀行的網路應用程式)沒辦法即時轉帳收帳，要花上一兩天的時間。狀況好的時候，當錢寄來時，阿母會烤香腸給其他隊友們。但大部分的日子，我們只夠餵飽自己，這時她會為在屋子裡煮飯感到罪惡感，因為他們能夠聞到料理的肉香味，然後前來問我們是不是也有他們的份......她還能作何回答？這些份量已經無物可分了。
Actually, it was so painful for her that she stopped cooking completely.
實際上，她完全煮不了飯這件事，對她來說是很痛苦的。
I remember there were times when I was kind of hungry, just before bed, you know? Like, I could eat. I would ask Mom if she had something, and she would say, “Just go to sleep, Endrick. Sleep will make it go away.”
我還記得當時上床之前我很餓的時候，你知道嗎？就是說......我還能吃些東西，我就會問阿母她還有沒有東西吃，她就會說：「快去睡覺啦，恩德里克，睡覺會消除飢餓感的。」
Sometimes, when we were really desperate for money, Mom was able to borrow some rice or some change. But one day, brother…. She had no favors left. She had no money and no one to go to.
有時候，當我們真的手頭很緊，阿母會去借一些米或一點錢。但老弟，有一天啊......她真的束手無策了。她沒有錢也沒有可以求援的對象。
She called Dad and said, “Douglas, I’m hungry … I don’t know what to do.”
她打給阿爸說：「道格拉斯，我、我好餓......而且我不知道該怎麼辦了。」
Dad sent 50 reais, but it wasn’t going to be available until the next day. She got down on her knees and prayed to God to help her. Then she got her bag from her chair and started pulling out everything, digging into the bottom.
阿爸寄了50雷亞爾(巴西貨幣單位)來，但那明天才會到帳。她雙膝下跪，祈求上帝垂憐。而後她從椅子上抓起她的包包，翻出每樣行李、翻到袋底朝天。
She found two reais, brother. Loose change. A gift from God.
老弟，蒙上帝恩典，她找到了2雷亞爾，少少的一點錢。
She went to the grocery store and bought some two-day-old bread. And if you ask her now, she will tell you that it tasted incredible. She says that hunger is a very strange sensation, and it makes even stale bread taste like heaven.
她前去雜貨店買了些放兩天的過期麵包。如果你現在問她，她會告訴你那美味得不可思議。她說當時的飢餓感是一種很奇妙的催化劑，甚至讓過期的麵包嚐起來如仙露一般。
To be honest, I wish I didn’t have to tell you this, because hunger is not a good thing. I hope that you will never experience it, like Mom did. But it is an important part of our story. The next time you see her, give her a hug and say thank you, because without her sacrifices we would not have the life we have today.
老實說，我希望我不用跟你說這些，因為受飢實在不是一件好事。我希望你永遠不用像阿母一樣親身體驗。但這是我們家故事的重要一環，下次你看到她的時候，給她一個擁抱然後跟她說聲謝謝，因為沒有她當時的犧牲，我們永遠不會有現在的好日子過。
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| Alexandre Schneider/Getty Images |
In fact, I didn’t even know a lot of these stories until recently, because Mom always hid her pain to protect my dream. I never saw her cry. She used to go into the bathroom so that I wouldn’t notice. She called Dad many times telling him that she couldn’t do it anymore, and that she wanted to go back home, but then I would come home from training, and me and my friends would be telling stories about what happened that day, and the goals that we scored…. And she could see my eyes shining.
實際上，我甚至是直到現在才知道這些事情，因為阿母總是把傷痛藏起來，去呵護我的夢想。那時我從來沒看過她掉淚，她會跑去浴室裡哭，這樣我才不會注意到。她打給阿爸好多次，跟他說她再也撐不下去了、她好想回家，但隨著我結束訓練回家，我、我朋友開始說起今天發生什麼事、我們進了哪些球得了哪些分......然後她看到我眼中爍著光芒的時候......
So she stayed. For me. For us.
於是，她留下了。為了我，為了我們家。
That’s our mom, always doing what is necessary. Sometimes she is the sergeant, the one who fights and yells and says the things we need to hear, but don’t want to hear. And other times she can hug us and make us the best omelets in the world. Whatever she does, remember that it’s all for one simple reason. She always wants what is best for us.
這就是我們的母親，永遠做該做的事情。有時候她會化身軍官，那種會爭取、吶喊、訴說我們該聽到但不想聽到的事情的人。而其他時侯她給予我們擁抱、並幫我們做全世界最讚的歐姆蛋。無論她做了什麼，請銘記她都只是為了一個簡單的原因——她希望為我們爭取到最好的。
Dad sacrificed a lot, too. After a few months, he came to São Paulo to support us, and he went to Palmeiras and asked the club for any job that he could get. They had one opening. It was on the cleaning crew inside the stadium. He always dreamed of being in that dressing room when he was a boy, so he went to work with a smile. He worked there for three years, first picking up garbage around the stadium and then getting promoted to clean the dressing room of the first team. He would tell the players that one day his son was going to be playing with them.
老爸也犧牲了很多。幾個月後，他也來到聖保羅來支持我們，他去了帕爾梅拉斯然後問他在那裡能不能謀到任何一個職位。
是，是有個職缺。球場的清潔人員的職缺。進球場更衣室是他孩提時期以來的夢想，所以他掛著笑容去了這份工作。他在那裡工作了三年，在球場周遭撿垃圾、為一線隊清理更衣室，他都跟那些球員說，「有一天，他兒子會跟他們一起打球」！
One day, the goalkeeper Jailson noticed that Dad was getting skinnier and skinnier. In the cafeteria, the cleaning crew and the staff ate with the players, and he noticed that Dad was only eating soup. So he put his arm around Dad and said, “Hey Douglas, give me your phone, I want to call your wife.”
有一天，守門員賈里森注意到老爸一天比一天瘦弱了。在球隊食堂裡，清潔人員、職員會跟球員一起吃東西，而他注意到阿爸都只喝湯。
賈里森伸出手臂，跟阿爸說：「欸，道格拉斯，電話給我，我打給你老婆一下。」
Dad said, “My wife? What do you want with my wife???”
阿爸說：「我老婆？你想對我老婆幹嘛？？？」
Jailson said, “No, no, I want her to tell me what’s going on with you. You never eat anything. Are you O.K.?”
賈里森回答：「沒有啦，我只是想跟她說你出什麼狀況了。你什麼都沒吃欸。你還好嗎？」
Dad was too embarrassed to explain, so Jailson actually called Mom, and she told him the real story. How Dad had burned his hand as a little kid on a barbeque, and how it was so bad that he nearly lost his hand. They put him on strong medication to fight the infection, and it made his teeth weak. By the time he was working for Palmeiras, they were all falling out. He could only eat soup.
阿爸困窘到不知道怎麼解釋，所以賈里森真的打給阿母了，然後阿母跟賈里森說了真相：阿爸小時候是怎麼在烤肉台燒傷他的手，傷得很重，重到差點失去一隻手。那些傷逼得他得用強力的治療去防止進一步感染，但那也讓他的牙齒無力咀嚼。於是那段在為帕爾梅拉斯工作時，那些牙齒們已經都掉光了。於是他只能喝湯。
Jailson pulled money together from all the players, and they surprised Dad with money for him to get his teeth fixed. God works in amazing ways, brother.
賈里森向所有球員募款，他們讓老爸去看牙的錢讓老爸感到驚喜。阿弟啊，上天總以意想不到的方式在默默做事呢。
Dad used to say, “My dream is to bite an apple.”
Today, thanks to God, he can bite any food he wants.
阿爸以前常說：「我的夢想是可以咬下一顆蘋果。」而蒙主垂憐，時至今日，阿爸已經可以咬下他想吃的所有食物了。
Around that time, my second goal was reached, too. We moved into an apartment above a lottery shop right next to the Palmeiras stadium. I could look out the window and see my dream every single morning when I woke up, and every night when I went to bed.
那段時間，我也達成了我的第二個目標。我們搬到帕爾梅拉斯球場右側一家彩卷行上的公寓。我每天早上醒來、每天晚上入睡前，都能從窗外看到我的夢想所在。
It was beautiful.
它，美麗動人。
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| Ricardo Moreira/Getty Images |
Wait, I forgot to tell you the full story about Dad….
等等，我忘了跟你說阿爸完整的故事了......
Mom is our rock, and Dad is our friend. That’s how it’s always been. But there is a lot more to his story that you haven’t heard. If you think I had it tough, you’re wrong. I was born in paradise compared to Dad. When he was a boy, our grandfather was not always there for the family. Football was his way out, too. When he was 15 years old, Dad left home and hitchhiked from Brasília to São Paulo. Half the time he walked the highway! Walked! That’s a long way, brother. He didn’t even tell his Mom! The whole way, he carried his life on his back: a pair of football boots, two 2-liter bottles — one with water, the other with powdered juice — and a couple of baguettes. His plan was to do trials with every club in the city. It took him a whole week, hitchhiking and walking in between.
阿母是我們的砥礪基石，阿爸是我們的好朋友。事情一直是這樣運作的。但關於他的事，有更多的是你沒聽過的。如果你覺得我有過辛苦的歲月，那你就錯了。
跟阿爸比，我猶如生於天堂。
當他孩提時候，阿公也不常在他的家人左右，足球同樣也是阿爸的出路。
所以，當他十五歲時，阿爸離鄉背井，一路從巴西利亞漫行到了聖保羅——一半的時間他甚至是走在高速公路上！用腳走！那可是迢迢長路啊老弟。這些事情他甚至沒跟他媽媽說過！(Perez編按：Google地圖查詢約1,042公里)
整趟旅途，他都把它僅有的家當扛在肩上：一雙足球鞋、兩個兩公升的瓶子——一瓶裝水，一瓶裝粉泡果汁——還有一雙法棍麵包。他的盤算是在城市裡的每間球會都去徵選看看。那花費了他一整個禮拜的時間，從巴西利亞到聖保羅奔走勞頓著。
When he finally arrived in São Paulo, he had no money and nowhere to go, so he just walked around knocking on the doors of clubs asking when they held trials. Somebody from São Paulo FC saw that he was struggling and gave him some food from their cafeteria. On one of the coldest nights, another lady from a charity saw that he was sleeping under a tree in a park and invited him to a shelter. But it was so warm in the shelter, and it had been more than three nights since he’d slept in a bed, so he overslept and missed the trials for Nacional AC the next day.
而當他終於抵達聖保羅時，他已身無分文、又無處可去，所以他只能四處奔走、對著每個球會敲門徵詢他們何時會舉辦測試。有個聖保羅俱樂部的人看到阿爸飽經磨難，所以給了他一些食堂裡的食物。在一個惡寒的夜，慈善基金會的一位女士看到了他在公園的一棵樹下睡覺，就邀請他到救濟所內休息。避難所裡很溫暖，而且他已經有三個晚上沒睡在床上了，所以當第二天來到時，他睡過頭並且錯過了國家球會(編按：球隊名字，非國家隊)的徵選。
Can you imagine how tired Dad must have been? Can you imagine spending a week walking to pursue your dream, to get to that one trial … and then you miss it?
你能想像阿爸當時有多勞累嗎？你能想像你花了一個禮拜追逐你的夢想，拿到一次徵選機會......然後你錯過這件事情嗎？
When he told me, brother, I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
當他跟我說這件事情的時候，阿弟，我甚至不知道該笑還是該哭。
There was another night when it was raining, and Dad didn’t have anywhere to go, so he walked to the Palmeiras stadium, and he slept under the roof of the ticket booth. He wasn’t able to make his dream happen, but he gave everything.
又一個在下雨的晚上，阿爸再度無處可去，於是他走向帕爾梅拉斯球場，在售票亭的遮雨棚下睡人籬下。他已經付出所以，但再也沒力氣再去實踐夢想。
When he got back to Brasília, he played in the várzea for his livelihood. You know várzea, right? There are no salaries there, brother. It’s pure passion. They play for a little “help,” if anything. Dad played for his electric bill, or for a little bag of rice. When I was little, I used to tag along to every match with him and play around with a ball on the sideline. When it was halftime, and they were playing music and everyone was partying and making bets, I used to go out on the pitch and do tricks. (Do you think this is why I still sing songs to myself while I am playing in a match?)
當他回到巴西利亞時，他迫於生計只好效力várzea。你知道várzea吧？那是個不支薪的球隊，阿弟，他們是打熱情球的。如果他們踢球有任何所獲的話，那就是一點點的「幫助」。阿爸用踢球來換取電費帳單的付款，或是一小袋米。而當我小時候，我會跟去他的每場比賽，然後在邊線拿著一顆球玩。
而當半場時間來臨，他們放音樂然後大家在開派對、聚賭的時候，我以前就會跑到場上然後表演些雜技。(你會覺得這是為什麼我在踢比賽的時候，還是會自唱自歌的原因嗎？)
Dad actually used to see me after the games and say, “Endrick, how the hell did you get a Coca-Cola? You haven’t taken it from someone, have you?”
阿爸以前會在賽後看到我然後問我：「恩德里克，你是怎麼拿到那罐可口可樂的？你不是從別人那邊偷來的吧？」
I’d say, “No, no, I hit the crossbar and Dudu over there won 10 reais. He bought me a Coke for helping him win his bet. If I hit it again, he’s gonna buy me a meat skewer!”
我回答：「沒有、沒有，我打中球門門楣，然後那邊那個叔叔就賭贏了10雷亞爾。他因為我幫他贏得賭注買了一罐可樂請我。如果我又打中的話，他就會送我一根烤肉串！」
That was my hustle! Mom says I used to come home completely grey from playing in the dirt so long. You know the ashy earth in Brazil. I hope you still know it. Mom had to wash me like a dog. The minute I was clean, pssshhewww — outside again like a rocket.
(Remember what I said? Born into football.)
這可是我的奮鬥日子啊！阿母說我那時會玩得滿身泥濘才回家，你知道巴西土地的塵土飛揚，我希望你還知道它的飛揚。阿母會像洗一條狗一樣把我洗乾淨。
而當我乾淨的那一分鐘，咻——我又像火箭一般跑出去哩。
(記得我說的嗎？為了埋首於足球而生。)
My dream was not just my dream, but our father’s dream, our grandfather’s dream, our whole family’s dream.
我的夢想不只是我的夢想，更是阿爸、阿公、乃至於我們一整個家族的夢想。
Do you think when Dad was sleeping under the ticket booth at the Palmeiras stadium, he would have dreamed that his son would play there one day?
你覺得當老爸睡在帕爾梅拉斯球場的售票亭底下的時候，他會夢到他兒子有朝一日會在那裏踢球嗎？
When I was 15, and I turned professional with Palmeiras, I can honestly say that I had everything I ever wanted in my life, thank God. I was able to buy Mom a house and move both of our grandmothers out of Chaparral, a very dangerous place. After that conversation I had with Dad on the couch, I knew that I had reached my first goal: To help my family have a better life.
當我十五歲的時候，我成了帕爾梅拉斯的職業隊球員。我可以誠實以告，感謝上帝，我有了我所想要的一切。我能幫媽媽買棟房子，然後讓奶奶跟外婆搬離叢林地帶，一個很危險的地方。而在我跟阿爸的沙發對談以後，我知道我完成了我的第一個目標：讓我們家人過好日子。
What a moment!
But also … brother … what a relief.
多美好的一刻啊！
但......老弟......這也是何其解脫。
By the time you were a baby, we were living a very different life, and that life is only going to keep changing in the years to come.
當你還是嬰兒的時候，我們有著跟現在很不一樣的人生，而那樣的生活，接踵而來的幾年只迎來了不斷地改變。
In a few months, I will leave for Spain, and you are coming with me. Real Madrid…. It was my third goal, but one that I never dared to actually write down. When I was 7 or 8 years old, I didn’t have a phone or anything, so I used to borrow Mom’s computer and watch highlights of Real Madrid. I know you are too young to remember these names, but I was obsessed with that 2013–14 team with Cristiano and Modrić and Benzema. That was my gateway into the history of the club. I started going on YouTube and learning about the Galácticos and then deeper and deeper — Puskás, Di Stéfano.… Trust me, in Madrid, you’ll hear more about these names soon enough.
幾個月以後，我就要離開這裡到西班牙了，而你也將跟我一起過去。
皇家馬德里......那是我的第三個目標，但是是我連寫都不敢寫下來的目標。當我才七、八歲的時候，我沒有手機或是其他類似的東西，所以我借用了老媽的電腦觀看皇馬的比賽精華。我知道你還太年輕，記不清那些名字，但我真被2013-14那支擁有C羅、莫德里奇、本澤馬的陣容。那是我認識這支球隊歷史的康莊大門。我開始在Youtube上越加深入的了解銀河艦隊的一切——普斯卡斯、迪史蒂芬諾......相信我，你很快會在馬德里聽到關於這些名字更多的故事。
You can learn anything on YouTube. It’s like a university. More than anyone, I watched Cristiano. Not just his highlights, but also how hard he worked, and what others said about his mentality. From him, I learned that hard work is more important than talent.
你可以在Youtube上學到任何東西，它就像個大學一樣。我看最多的是C羅的影片，遠勝其他人。不只是看精華而已，也看他工作的勤奮態度、看別人怎麼敘述他強大的精神力。從他身上，我學到了努力遠比天賦更重要。
One day, I hope to meet him. I still haven’t yet, as I am writing this. But his son follows me on Instagram, so I hope that by the time you are reading this I have been able to shake his hand. God willing, all will go well at Real Madrid and with my career, and Cristiano will follow me! Maybe you and me both! Hahaha.
我期待我有朝一日可以與他見面。我寫下這件事情的時候還沒做到啦。但他兒子在IG上追蹤我了，所以我希望隨著時間推移，你看到這段文字時我已經能夠跟他見面握手了。望上帝允可，在皇馬的一切與我的職涯都會順利、然後C羅會追蹤我！可能甚至我們兩個一起追蹤！哈哈哈。
To meet Cristiano Ronaldo. That is goal number 4.
第四個目標，見到C羅一面。
Goal number 5 is that the rest of this season with Palmerias ends in harmony with us winning the Paulista.
第五個目標是這一季在帕爾梅拉斯剩下的日子，能夠在高舉聖保羅州獎盃的情況下和諧劃下句點。
And goal number 6 … I actually have a funny story about that one. When I went to visit Real Madrid for the first time a few months ago, many amazing things happened. When we met Florentino Pérez, he looked Dad in the eye and said “Real Madrid will be the only club that will treat Endrick like a son.”
第六個目標嘛......我有個有趣的小故事可以分享。幾個月前我第一次抵達皇馬的時候，很多驚奇美好的事發生了。我們遇到佛羅倫提諾佩雷茲的時候，他深深看入阿爸的眼眸，說：「皇家馬德里，將會是絕無僅有，把恩德里克視為自己兒子照顧的俱樂部。」
You should have seen Dad’s face when he said that. It really meant a lot to him.
當佩雷茲總裁說這些話時，你真該看看阿爸的臉。那段話真的對老爸承載了很多很多的重量。
I met Bellingham, the really good one that always scores for me on PlayStation, and everyone calls him Jude, so I told him, “Hey Jude, for my next goal, I will celebrate like you.” When I scored, I sent him the video on Instagram, and he reposted it.
我遇到貝林漢了，那個在PS上真的很會幫我得分的人，大家都叫他「小朱」，於是我跟他說：「Hey Jude，我下顆進球，會模仿你的慶祝動作唷！」當我得分的時候，我在IG上把那段影片傳給他，而且他轉發了！
I even got some advice from Ronaldo, O Fenômeno. It was all a blur, like I was in a dream. But the thing that I remember the most is when I went into the dressing room and Modrić talked to me. His number 10 shirt was hanging up and he pointed to the seat next to him and said, “Number 9 and Number 10. Who knows … next season, maybe you’ll sit next to me.”
我甚至得到大羅給我的一些建議，那個奇跡之人。這一切都朦朦朧朧，我像是在夢中一般。
但這些事情裡頭，我記得最清楚的是我走進更衣室的時候莫德里奇跟我說的話。
That really attached to my heart. I thought, Man, if Modrić believes I am worthy to wear the number 9, then I must be worthy.
那實實在在打動了我的心。我想說，欸老兄，如果莫德里奇都相信我值得九號球衣，那我就一定值得！
I have not arrived in Madrid yet, so I don’t know, but I hope that one day I will wear the number 9 for Real Madrid.
我還沒正式抵達馬德里，所以我還不知道，但我希望有一天我能穿上九號球衣為皇馬效力。
And as for goal number 7? I want my own house in Madrid with an office where I can put up a big whiteboard so I can write all my goals on it! Hahaha. Mom will still not let me put up a whiteboard in her house!
至於第七個目標是什麼？我希望我自己在馬德里的房子裡有個辦公室，我可以放上一張大大的白板，然後記錄下我的所有進球！阿母還不讓我在她家放一張白板。
“There is no room, Endrick! Simply no room!”
「沒地方了啦，恩德里克！真的沒地方了啦！」
You know how she is. We have to respect her.
你知道她的個性，我們得尊重她。
I actually had another goal, but I’m not going to number it, because it has already been achieved. That goal is that you live the life that you want, whatever that is.
實際上我還有一個目標，但我不打算幫它編號， 因為它已經算是被完成了。這個目標就是，不管會是什麼樣子，你都能夠過你想要的生活。
For three generations, and maybe more, our family has chased the dream of football. We have been trying to change our circumstances. But now you can do whatever you want. You can be a doctor or lawyer, or maybe since we are going to Spain, the country of Nadal and Alcaraz, you can become a professional tennis player. You are already chasing the ball, like me. So you can be a footballer if you want. But you don’t have to be. There is no stress anymore, thanks to God, thanks to Mom and Dad, and thanks to football.
橫跨三代(也許更多)，我們家族都在追尋足球夢。我們試著藉此打破命運的輪迴。
但現在，你能夠做你想要的任何事情了。你想當醫師、律師，或是在我們到了西班牙——那座納達爾、Alcaraz所出身的國家以後，你想成為一個網球職業選手，你都能放手去做。你已經在像我一樣追著球跑了，所以如果你想也可以成為一位足球員。但你不再「必須」做這件事。已經不再有生計的壓力了，感謝上帝、感謝阿母跟阿爸、感謝足球。
You just enjoy your life how you want, brother. That is my gift to you.
你可以用你想要的方式享受人生，老弟。那就是我送給你的禮物。
And now this is where this letter ends and the future begins. You see, people ask me all the time about Real Madrid, and the national team, and how I think my career will go. But do you know what the truth is?
此刻，是這封信該停下，也是未來即將啟航的時間點。如你所見，人們無時無刻不問我關於皇馬、關於國家、關於我的職涯會怎麼樣。你知道事實是什麼嗎？
I simply don’t know.
我壓根不知道。
In life, we don’t know what tomorrow will bring. We don’t know if we will even get a tomorrow. All we can do is thank God for all he has given us.
縱觀人生，我們都不知道明天會捎來什麼，我們甚至不知道明天會不會來。我們能做的，充其量就是感謝上帝他所賜與我們的一切。
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| Sam Robles/The Players' Tribune |
I hope you understand now, brother. The life we are living right now did not come out of nowhere. It was earned, with hard work and a lot of tears. Mom always says that a single mistake can make it fall apart, and she is right.
我希望現在你能深知此節，阿弟。我們現在的生活並非莫名迸出。它是透過努力不懈與許多淚水被賺取來的。阿母總說一失足就可能讓這些萬劫不復，她是對的。
The moment we forget where we came from, we risk losing our way.
當我們忘記我們從何而來，就有在這條路上迷失自己的風險。
That is why I am giving you this gift of our family's history.
那也是為什麼我給你我們的家族史，作為給你的禮物。
Mom eating the old bread.
Dad sleeping under the ticket booth.
Mom crying in the bathroom.
Dad crying on the couch.
May you always keep it in your heart.
Love you, brother.
From the bottom of my heart,
Endrick Felipe Moreira de Sousa, FORWARD
那段阿母啃食著過期麵包的日子。
那段阿爸睡在售票亭下的日子。
那段阿母在浴室泣不成聲的日子。
那段爸爸在沙發上掉眼淚的日子。
點點滴滴，希望常在你心。
愛你，阿弟，發自我心底最深處。
(署名)
恩德里克˙菲力佩˙莫雷拉˙德索沙，前！鋒！
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