Years pass. It is 1957. I am living in New York City. A friend convincesconvince vt.使确信， 使信服 me to go on a blind date with a lady of his. Reluctantly， I agree. But she is nice， this woman named Roma， and like me she is an immigrantimmigrant n.移民， 侨民adj.(从外国)移来的， 移民的， 移居的 so we have at least that in common.
“Where were you during the war？” Roma asks me gently in that delicate way immigrants ask one another questions about those years.
“I was in a concentration camp in Germany，” I reply.
Roma gets a far away look in her eyes， as if she is remembering something painful yet sweet.
我失去了包括家庭在内的所有珍贵的东西。但我依然记着这个姑娘，这记忆一直存留在我的心底并在我移民美国后仍然鼓励着我好好地生活下去。
岁月如梭，转眼到了1957年。我家住纽约，一个朋友劝说我和他的一个女性朋友进行约会。我勉强答应了。她人还不错，叫罗玛，和我一样也是移民，因此至少在这一点上我们相同。
“战争期间你在哪里？”罗玛用移民相互问及那段岁月时所特有的体贴语气，细声细语地问道。
“我在德国的一所集中营里。”我答道。
罗玛陷入了遐思之中，仿佛回忆起了痛苦却又甜蜜的事情。
“What is it？” I ask.
“I am just thinking about something from your past， Herman，” Roma explains in a voice suddenly very soft. “You see， when I was a young girl I lived near a concentration camp. There was a boy there， a prisoner and for a long while I used to visit him every day. I remember I used to bring him apples. I would throw the apple over the fence and he would be so happy.”
With my heart pounding so loudly， Roma sighs heavily and continues， “It is hard to describe how we felt about each other—after all we were young and we only exchanges a few words when we could—but I can tell you there was much love there. I assume he was killed like so many others. But I cannot bear to think that， and so I try to remember him as he was for those months we were given together.”
“你没事吧？”我问她。
“我只是在想我过去的一些事，赫尔曼。”罗玛突然用一种温柔的语气解释说，“你知道，我小的时候住在集中营附近。那里有一个男孩儿，一个小囚犯，在相当长的一段时间里我每天都去看望他。我记得我常给他带去一个苹果。我经常从栅栏上把苹果扔过去，那时他是多么的开心。”
我的心猛地一下子剧烈颤动起来。罗玛重重地叹了一口气接着又说道：“很难讲清楚当时我们对彼此的感觉。毕竟那时我们都还很小，情况允许时我们也只是互相谈上几句——但我可以告诉你，这其中包含着许多的爱。我猜测他也许像众多的其他人一样被杀害了。我这么想实在于心不忍，所以我一直想着在一起共处的那几个月。”
I look directly at Roma and ask， “And did that boy say to you one day ‘Do not bring me an apple tomorrow. I am being sent to another camp.’？”
“Why yes，” Roma responds her voice trembling.
“But Herman， how on earth could you possibly know that？”
I take her hands in mine and answer， “Because I was that young boy， Roma.”
For many moments， there is only silence. We cannot take our eyes from each other， and as the veils of time lift， we recognize the soulsoul n.灵魂， 心灵， 精神， 精力 behind the eyes， the dear friend we once love so much， whom we have never stopped loving， whom we have never stopped remembering.
Finally， I speak： “Look， Roma， I was separated from you once， and I dont ever want to be separated from you again. Now I am free， and I want to be together with you forever. Dear will you marry me？”
我注视着她问：“是不是有一天那男孩对你说：‘明天别给我送苹果了。我将要被押送到另外一个集中营。’？”
“噢，是啊。”罗玛用颤抖的声音回应道。
“但是，赫尔曼，你是怎么知道这件事的？”
我拉过并紧握住她的手答道：“因为我就是那个小男孩，罗玛。”
接下来便是长时间的沉默。随着时光面纱的揭开，我们再也没能把眼睛从对方的身上移开，我们认出了隐藏在眼睛后面的那颗心，我们曾经是深深爱恋的朋友，我们从未停止过爱恋，我们从未停止过怀念对方。
最后我说：“是这样，罗玛，我与你已经分开过一次，但我再也不想与你分开了。现在我获得了自由，我渴望永远与你在一起。亲爱的，嫁给我好吗？”
I see the same twinkle in her twinkled eyes that I used to see as Roma says， “Yes I will marry you.”
Almost forty years have passed since that day when I found my Roma again. Destinydestiny n.命运， 定数 brought us together the first time during the war to show me a promise and hope， and now it had reunited us to fulfillfulfill vt.履行， 实现， 完成(计划等) that promise.
Valentines Day 1996. I bring Roma to the Oprah Winfrey Show to honor her on national television. I want to tell her in front of the millions of the people what I feel in my heart every day：
“Darling， you feed me in the concentration camp when I was hungry. And I am still hungry， for something I will never get enough of： I am only hungry for your love.”
当罗玛说话时我再一次看到了我过去在她眼中看到过的那种光彩。“好的，我嫁给你。”
自从我找到罗玛至今已经近四十年了。在战争年代里命运女神第一次让我们相遇在一起，同时给了我希望的诺言，而如今她又使我们相聚履行了这一诺言。
1996年的情人节，我和罗玛参加了奥普拉·温弗里的节目，在这个全国性的电视节目中我向她表达了我的敬意。我想在数百万观众面前告诉她我心里一直想说的话：
“亲爱的，当我在集中营里饥饿不堪时，是你给我送来了吃的。而现在我依然很饥饿，我渴望得到那种我永远也不能满足的东西，那就是：我只渴望你的爱。”
苦难中的情感最令人感动。这是一份不幸中萌芽、幸运中相遇的爱情故事。能经得起考验的爱情是坚不可摧的，曾经带给我们的也许是伤痕累累的创伤，却是日后我们感情锋芒的潜在力量。得来不易的爱情更加真实，更加值得珍惜。相信有情人终成眷属。
