The Golden Years
My best friend， Cocoa， and I live in a senior-citizen apartment complex1 in a lovely small town. Cocoa is a ten-year-old poodle2 and I am a sixty-nine-yea-old lady， so you can see we both qualify as senior citizens.
Years ago， I promised myself that when I retired I would get a chocolate poodle to share my golden years. From the very first， Cocoa has always been exceptionally well-behaved3. I never have to tell him anything more than once. He was housebroken4 in three days and has never done anything naughty. He is extremely neat――when taking his toys from his box to play， he always puts them back when he is finished. I have been accused of being obsessively5 neat， and sometimes I wonder if he mimics6 me or if he was born that way， too.
He is a wonderful companion. When I throw a ball for him， he picks it up in his mouth and throws it back to me. We sometimes play a game I played as a child――but never with a dog. He puts his paw on my hand， I cover it with my other hand， he puts his paw on top， and I slide7 my hand out from underneath the pile and lay it on top， and so on. He does many amusing things that make me laugh， and when that happens， he is so delighted he just keeps it up8 . I enjoy his company immensely.
But almost two years ago，Cocoa did something that defies9 comprehension.Was it a miracle or a coincidence10？ It is certainly a mystery.
One afternoon，Cocoa started acting strangely. I was sitting on the floor playing with him， when he started pawing and sniffing at11 the right side of my chest. He had never done anything like this ever before， and I told him， " No." With Cocoa， one " no" is usually sufficient12， but not that day. He stopped briefly， then suddenly ran toward me from the other side of the room，throwing his entire13 weigh――eighteen pounds――at the right side of my chest. He crashed14 into me and I yelped15 in pain. It hurt more than I thought it should have.
Soon after this， I felt a lump16. I went to my doctors， and after X rays， tests and lab work were done， they told me I had cancer.
When cancer starts， for an unknown reason， a wall of calcium17 builds. Then the lump or cancer attaches itself to this wall. When Cocoa jumped on me， the force of the impact18 broke the lump away from the calcium wall. This made it possible for me to notice the lump. Before that， I couldn't see it or feel it， so there was no way for me to know it was there.
I had a complete mastectomy19 and the cancer has not spread to any other part of my body. The doctors told me if the cancer had gone undetected even six more months， it would have been too late.
Was Cocoa aware of 20 just what he was doing？ I'll never really know. What I do know is that I'm glad I made a promise to spend my golden years with this wonderful chocolate brown poodle――for Cocoa not only shares his life with me； he has made sure that I will be around to share my life with him！
美好的晚年
我和我最好的朋友科科住在一座可爱小城的老年公民公寓里。科科是头10岁的卷毛狗，而我是个69岁的女人，所以我们俩都够格当老年公民。
多年前，我就决意，退休时要找条巧克力色的卷毛狗与我共度美好的晚年。从一开始，科科就表现得十分听话，什么事我说一遍就行。科科经过三天训练后就养成了家居卫生的习惯，而且从没有干过淘气的事。它特别爱整洁――从盒子里拿出玩具玩毕之后，总是再放回原处。有人说我过分爱整洁，可我有时想那狗是在学我样呢，还是它生来也是如此。
科科是出色的伴侣。我扔出球，它就用嘴叼起后扔给我。我们有时候玩一种我小时候玩的游戏――可这我从来没跟狗玩过。它把爪子放在我一只手上，我用另一只手盖在它爪子上，它把爪子放在上面，我再抽出最下面的手放在最上面，就这样继续着。科科有许多有趣的动作令我发笑。它见我笑，它就高兴地继续做那个动作。我十分喜欢有它这样的伴儿。
但是大约两年前，科科做了件无法理解的事。这是奇迹，还是巧合？至今还是个谜。
有一天下午，科科开始行动反常。我坐在地上逗它玩，它开始用爪子挠，还不断地闻我胸部右侧。以前它从来没有这样过。我告诉它："不要这样。"通常说一遍" 不"就足够了，可是那天不行。它停顿片刻，然后突然从屋子的另一端朝我奔来，把全身18磅的重量压在我胸部右侧。科科猛撞了我，疼得我哇哇直叫。我想不该有这么痛。
此后不久，我感到有个肿块。我去看了医生，做了X光透视、各种检查和化验。他们告诉我说，我得了癌症。
癌症开始时，不知什么原因，出现一层钙壁。然后肿块或癌就附着在那钙壁上。科科跳在我身上时，冲击力把肿块从钙壁上分离开，这样使我才有可能注意到肿块。在这之前，我无法看见也感觉不到肿块，因而也就无从知道肿块的存在。
我做了彻底的切割手术，癌细胞还没有扩散到身体其他部位。医生告诉我，要是再有半年还没发现癌症的话，就为时过晚了。
科科意识到它做的事情了吗？我永远也得不到答案。可我知道，我很高兴当时我许愿要和这只杰出的巧克力色卷毛狗共度晚年，因为科科不仅与我分享它的生命，而且确实做到使我能健康地活着与它分享我的生命。
注释：
1.complex n.综合体，集合体，体系
2.poodle n.卷毛狗，（喻）追随者
3.well-behaved adj.行为端正的
4.housebreak vt.训练（家犬、家猫等）保持卫生习惯（即在屋外或一定的地方便溺）
5.obsessively adv.（在迫切性上）过分地
6.mimic vt.模仿，学…的样子
7.slide vt.悄悄地迅速放置
8.keep up（使）继续下去，（使）不停止
9.defy vt.使成为不可能
10.coincidence n.巧合
11.sniff vi.（吸着气）嗅（与at搭配）
12.sufficient adj.足够的
13.entire adj.全部的
14.crash vi.猛撞
15.yelp vi.失声急叫
16.lump n.肿块
17.calcium n.（化）钙
18.impact n.撞击力
19.mastectomy n.（医）乳房切除术
20.aware adj.意识到的（与of搭配）
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