The Postcards from Nowhere

Owen's family moved into their new house just two months ago. Since then, postcards keep arriving addressed to someone named Priscilla Hart. The first one shows a beach with a short note: "Wish you were here! Miss our summer walks. Love, G." Owen assumes it's simply a mistake and leaves it on the counter.

欧文一家搬进新房子才两个月。从那以后，一直有明信片寄来，收件人是一个叫普里西拉·哈特的人。第一张是一片海滩，上面写着一句短短的话：“真希望你也在这里！想念我们夏天的散步。爱你的G”欧文以为只是寄错了，就把它放在了台面上。

But another postcard arrives the following week, and then another the week after that. Each one is signed differently, but they all mention memories Owen doesn't recognize. There's a garden, a dog named Biscuit, and a trip to the mountains. His younger sister Nora starts to find it a little unsettling.

可是下一周又来了一张明信片，再下一周又来了一张。每一张的落款都不一样，可它们都提到了欧文不认识的往事。有一座花园，有一只叫饼干的狗，还有一次山里的旅行。他的妹妹诺拉开始觉得这事有点让人发毛。

"Maybe someone is sending secret messages," Nora says one evening, clearly more excited than worried. "Or maybe this Priscilla person is missing and nobody has told us."

“也许有人在发秘密消息，”一天晚上，诺拉说，她显然兴奋多于担心，“或者这个叫普里西拉的人失踪了，只是没有人告诉我们。”

Owen isn't convinced by his sister's dramatic theories, but even he has to admit the pattern is strange. He decides to look up the previous owner of the house. A quick search shows that a woman named Priscilla Hart lived there for almost thirty years. She later moved into a retirement community across town.

欧文并不相信妹妹那些夸张的推测，不过连他也不得不承认，这个规律很奇怪。他决定去查一查这栋房子以前的主人。一查之下，原来有位叫普里西拉·哈特的女士在这里住了将近三十年。后来她搬进了城另一头的一个养老社区。

Once Owen has her new address, he visits the retirement home. He brings the whole stack of postcards to the front desk. The woman at the desk recognizes the name immediately and smiles.

欧文拿到她的新地址后，就去了那家养老院。他把整叠明信片带到了前台。前台的女士立刻认出了这个名字，笑了起来。

"Oh, these are from her sister," she explains. "They've been writing to each other for years. Her sister just still uses the old address out of habit. I'll make sure Priscilla gets them today."

“哦，这些是她妹妹寄的，”她解释说，“她们互相通信好多年了。她妹妹只是出于习惯，还在用旧地址。我保证今天就把它们交到普里西拉手里。”

Owen feels a small wave of relief, mixed with something else. He's a little sorry the mystery has such a simple answer. Nora, on the other hand, is delighted to hear that Priscilla has a dog named Biscuit. She insists they should visit sometime.

欧文感到一阵小小的轻松，同时还夹杂着别的什么。这个谜的答案这么简单，他有点遗憾。而诺拉呢，听说普里西拉真的有一只叫饼干的狗，高兴极了。她坚持说他们改天应该去看看她。

A few weeks later, a new postcard arrives, this time addressed correctly to Owen's family. It's from Priscilla herself, thanking them for their kindness and inviting them over for tea.

几个星期后，又来了一张新的明信片，这次收件人写得对了，是欧文一家。它是普里西拉本人寄来的，感谢他们的好意，并邀请他们过去喝茶。