Michael Chugani 褚简宁 - ingrained in your mind｜又中又英
There are certain things some people will remember forever. Many older Americans will never forget November 22, 1963, the day President John Kennedy was assassinated. Older Americans will always remember July 20, 1969, when an American became the first human to walk on the moon. September 11, 2001 will always be ingrained in my mind because terrorists crashed planes into New York’s World Trade Center. I was living in Seattle at the time. September 8, 2022 will be ingrained in my mind. That’s when Queen Elizabeth II died. I was in Washington DC when I heard the news.
I am not a royalist, but I admired the Queen’s longevity. She was special to me because I was born in colonial Hong Kong. Even in her old age, the Queen did the duties required of a Queen. If something is ingrained in your mind, it means it is deeply rooted in your mind. A royalist is a person who supports a king or queen or who believes a king or queen should rule a country. The word “longevity” means a long life.
Queen Elizabeth II was 96 years old when she died. She did not rule the country because Britain is a democracy. She was loved but elected rulers ruled the country. Even though I am not a royalist I enjoyed the Netflix series Harry and Meghan about the Queen’s grandson Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle. When a reporter asked Prince Harry what his late mother Diana would have thought of Meghan, he replied she would consider them as thick as thieves. The expression “as thick as thieves” means very close friends who share secrets.
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有些事，有些人会永远都记得。许多老一辈的美国人永远都不会忘记一九六三年十一月二十二日，就是总统约翰甘迺廸遇刺身亡的那天。老一辈的美国人永远都会记得一九六九年七月二十日，一个美国人成为第一个在月球上行走的人。二○○一年九月十一日也会深深烙印（ingrained）在我脑海中，因为恐怖份子把客机撞向了纽约的世贸中心。当时我在西雅图居住。二○二二年九月八日也会深印（ingrained）在我脑海中，英女皇伊利沙伯二世就在当天逝世。我听到这个死讯的时候，身处华盛顿特区。
我并不是一个保皇派（royalist），但我钦佩英女皇长寿（longevity）。她对我来说别具意义，因为我生于殖民时代的香港。即使在年纪老迈的时日，英女皇仍然履行女皇的职务。若某事是 ingrained in your mind，意即它在你脑海中根深蒂固。A royalist是个拥护国王或女皇的保皇派，又或认为一个国家应由国王或女皇治理的君国主义者。Longevity即指长寿。
英女皇伊利沙伯二世逝世时为九十六岁。她并没有管治国家，因为英国是个民主国家。她备受爱戴，但国家是由民众选出的统治者所管治。即使我并非保皇派（royalist），但我享受看Netflix的影集《哈利王子与梅根》，就是关于英女皇的孙哈利王子与他的妻子梅根‧马克尔的纪录片。当一名记者问哈利王子，他已故的母亲会怎样看待梅根时，他回答说，她们将会 as thick as thieves——习语“as thick as thieves”是指亲密无间、互相分享秘密的闺中好友。
中译：七刻
Michael Chugani 褚简宁
