I began to lose my hearing about ten years ago,
大約十年前我開(kāi)始失去聽(tīng)力

when I was in the military.
那時(shí)我正在服役

My husband and I got a cat about five years ago.
大約五年前，我和丈夫有了一只小貓

I've never owned a cat before,
我從沒(méi)養(yǎng)過(guò)貓

so I had no idea
所以我完全不知道

what kind of noises they made
貓會(huì)發(fā)出什么樣的怪聲

besides "meow"
除了“喵”

so I had no context for what to expect
所以我全然無(wú)知無(wú)覺(jué)，亦無(wú)所期待

when I heard my cat purr for the first time today.
沒(méi)想到，今天我第一次聽(tīng)到了我的貓打呼嚕

I was laying in bed
那時(shí)我躺在床上

and he jumped up next to me
它跳上來(lái)，就在我身旁

and snuggled into my armpit .
依偎在我肩下

I started to feel him vibrate
我開(kāi)始感覺(jué)到他身體的震動(dòng)

like he always does
它一向如此

and then I heard it.
這時(shí)我聽(tīng)到了

I was so scared at first,
起初我有些害怕

I didn't understand what the sound was.
我不知道那是什么聲音

Then it clicked:
這時(shí)我腦中靈光一閃

purring isn't just vibrating!
原來(lái)，打呼嚕不僅是身體震動(dòng)

It's a sound!
這是一種聲音！

I can hear it!
我聽(tīng)到了！