My grandparents were married for over half a century, and played their own special game from the time they had met each other. The goal of their game was to write the word shmily in a surprise place for the other to find. They took turns leaving shmily around the house, and as soon as one of them discovered it, it was their turn to hide it once more.
They dragged shmily with their fingers through the sugar and flour containers to await whoever was preparing the next meal. They smeared1 it in the dew on the windows overlooking the patio2 where my grandma always fed us warm, homemade pudding with blue food coloring. Shmily was written in the steam left on the mirror after a hot shower, where it would reappear bath after bath.
At one point, my grandmother even unrolled an entire roll of toilet paper to leave shmily on the very last sheet.
There was no end to the places shmily would pop up. Little notes with shmily scribbled3 hurriedly were found on dashboards and car seats, or taped to steering4 wheels. The notes were stuffed inside shoes and left under pillows.
Shmily was written in the dust upon the mantel and traced in the ashes of the fireplace. This mysterious word was as much a part of my grandparents house as the furniture.
It took me a long time before I was able to fully5 appreciate my grandparents game. Skepticism has kept me from believing in true love one that is pure and enduring. However, I never doubted my grandparents relationship. They had love down pat. It was more than their flirtatious6 little games; it was a way of life. Their relationship as based on a devotion and passionate7 affection which not everyone is lucky enough to experience.
Grandma and Grandpa held hands every chance they could. They stole kisses as they bumped into each other in their tiny kitchen. They finished each others sentences and shared the daily crossword8 puzzle and word jumble9. My grandma whispered to me about how cute my grandpa was, how handsome and old he had grown to be. She claimed that she really knew how to pick em. Before every meal they bowed their heads and gave thanks, marveling at their blessings10: a wonderful family, good fortune, and each other.
But there was a dark cloud in my grandparentslife: my grandmother had breast cancer. The disease had first appeared ten years earlier. As always, Grandpa was with herEvery step of the way. He comforted her in their yellow room, painted that
way so that she couldalways be surrounded by sunshine, even when she was too sick to go outside.
Now the cancer was again attacking her body. With the help of a cane11 and my grandfathers steady hand, they went to church every morning. But my grandmother grew steadily12 weaker until, finally, she could not leave the house anymore. For a while, Grandpa would go to church alone, praying to God to watch over his wife.
Then one day, what we all dreaded13 finally happened. Grandma was gone.
Shmily. It was scrawled14 in yellow on the pink ribbons of my grandmothers funeral bouquet15. As the crowd thinned and the last mourners turned to leave, my aunts, uncles, cousins and other family members came forward and gathered around Grandma one last time. Grandpa stepped up to my grand- mothers casket and, taking a shaky breath, he began to sing to her. Through his tears and grief, the song came, a deep and throaty lullaby.
Shaking with my own sorrow, I will never forget that moment. For I knew that, although I couldnt begin to fathom16 the depth of their love, I had been privileged to witness its unmatched beauty.
shmily: See How Much I Love You.
我的祖父和祖母结婚已逾半个世纪，然而多少年来，他们彼此间不倦地玩着一个特殊的游戏：在一个意料之外的地方写下shmily这个词留待他们来发现。他们轮换着在屋前房后留下shmily，一经他们发现，就开始新的一轮。
他们用手指在糖罐和面箱里写下shmily，等着筹备下一餐饭的他们来发现；他们在覆着霜花的玻璃上写下shmily；一次又一次的热水澡后，总可以看见雾气蒙罩的镜子上留下的shmily。
有时，祖母甚至会重卷一整卷卫生纸，只为了在最后一片纸上写下shmily。
没shmily不可能出现的地方。仓促间涂写的shmily会出目前汽车坐垫上，或是一张贴在方向盘轴心的小纸条上。这些的字条会被塞进鞋子里或是压在枕下。
Shmily会被书写在壁炉台面的薄尘上，或是勾画在炉内的灰底上。这个神秘的词，像祖爸爸妈妈的家具一样成了他们房间的一部分。
直到很长时间将来，我才能完全理解祖爸爸妈妈之间游戏的意义。年轻使我不会爱那种纯洁且历久弥坚的爱。然而，我从未怀疑过祖爸爸妈妈之间的感情。他们彼此深爱。他们的小游戏已远非调情消遣，那是一种生活方法。他们之间的感情是基于一种深挚的爱和捐躯精神，不是每个人都能体验到的。
祖父和祖母一有机会就彼此执手相握。他们在小厨房里错身而过时偷吻；他们说完彼此的半截句子；他们一块玩拼字和字谜游戏。祖母常忘情地对我耳语祖父有多可爱迷人，依旧还是那样最帅。她骄傲地宣称我们的确了解怎么样选择。每次餐前他们垂首祈祷时，感谢他们遭到的很多福佑：一个幸福的家庭、好运势和拥有彼此。
可是一片乌云遮蔽了祖爸爸妈妈的家：祖母的乳癌恶化了。初次发现是在10年前。跟以往一样，祖父一直跟祖母肩并肩地走过生活艰难之旅的每一步。为了安慰祖母，祖父将室内喷涂成黄色，如此在祖母病重不可以出屋时，亦能感到周围的阳光。
面对癌症的第三侵袭，在祖父坚实的手臂和拐杖的帮扶下，他们天天清晨一块去教堂散步和默祷。但祖母日渐消瘦，终于，祖父只能一个人去教堂，祈求上帝看顾他的老婆。
然而那一天，大家担忧忧惧的事终于还是发生了，祖母去了。
Shmily写在祖母葬礼上花束的黄色缎带上。当人群散去，叔伯、姑姑和其他的家庭成员又走上前来最后一次围聚在祖母身旁。祖父步向祖母的灵柩，用颤抖的声音轻轻的唱起了解我有多么爱你透过悲伤的泪，这歌声低沉轻柔地飘入耳来
因悲伤而颤栗着，我永远没办法忘记那一刻。由于我了解，尽管我没办法领会他们爱得有多深，但我却有幸亲眼目睹了独一无二的爱情之美。
我终于了解了他们特殊小游戏的意义SHMILY: See how much I love you（了解我有多么爱你）。
