1. And even though I was hopeful throughout the dinner that my mother would somehow see Rich's kindness, his sense of humor and charm, I knew he had failed miserably in her eyes.
    虽然吃饭时, 我一直希望我妈妈能从某种角度看到里奇的善良、幽默感和魅力，但是我知道在她的眼里里奇是一败塗地了。

2. And he proceeded to pour a riverful of the salty black stuff on the china plate, right before my mother's shocked eyes.
    接着他就当着我母亲吃惊的眼光，把 "一河浜" 这种咸乎乎、黑溜溜的东西倒到了瓷盆里。

3. As is the Chinese cook's custom, my mother always made negative remarks about her own cooking.
    我妈妈总是要对她自己的烹饪发表一些评论，说一些自己的菜烧得不好之类的话，这是中国厨师的习惯。

4. After much thought, I came up with a brilliant plan for Rich to meet my mother and win her over.
    经过反复思考，我终于想出了一个绝妙的、让里奇与我妈见面，并把她争取过来的计划。

5. Any mother would be proud to have him for a son-in-law.
    任何一个母亲都会因为有这样一个女婿而感到脸上有光的。

6. "She'll be there," my husband said. "I don't see how they could hold a P.T.A. meeting without Charles's mother."
    "她会去开会的。" 我丈夫说。"如果没有查尔斯的母亲参加，我不明白他们怎么可能召开家长会。"

7. At the meeting I sat restlessly, scanning each comfortable mother's face, trying to determine which one hid the secret of Charles.
    开会时，我不安地坐着，扫视着每一位母亲安详的脸，想确定哪一张脸能解开有关查尔斯的秘密。

8. "I've been so anxious to meet you," I said. "I'm Larry's mother."
    "我一直很想见见你，"我说。"我是劳里的妈妈。"

9. And even though I couldn't completely understand what she was saying in her thick Beijing accent, I knew — the same way I knew what my mother had been trying to tell me before I left.
    我有限的、结结巴巴的汉语无法表达我的复杂感情。虽然我不能完全理解她用浓重的北京口音说出来的话，我却能理解她的意思--就像我理解我妈妈在我动身之前努力讲给我听的事情一样。

10. As usual, she didn't know what to have for breakfast, so she grabbed a glass of milk and ate a piece of toast while standing by the sink. Just then, her mother, Jane, entered the kitchen.
    和往常一样，她不知道早餐该吃什么，便抓了杯牛奶，站在洗菜池旁吃了一块烤面包。就在此时，她妈妈简走进了厨房。