The Brown Bear
棕熊

My wife Laura and I were on the beach, with three of our children, taking pictures of shore birds near our home in Alaska when we spotted a bear. The bear was thin and small, moving aimlessly.
我和妻子劳拉，带着三个孩子，在阿拉斯加州的家附近海滩拍岸鸟时，发现了一只熊。熊又瘦又小，漫无目的地走动。

Just a few minutes later, I heard my daughter shouting, “Dad! The bear is right behind us!” An agressive bear will usually rush forward to frighten away its enemy but would suddenly stop at the last minute. This one was silent and its ears pinned back— the sign of an animal that is going in for the kill. And it was a cold April day. The bear behaved abnormally, probably because of hunger.
几分钟后，我听到女儿喊道：“爸爸！熊就在我们后面！”一只进攻性的熊通常会冲上前去吓跑它的敌人，但会在最后一刻突然停下来。这只熊一声不响，耳朵向后别着——这是动物准备进行杀戮的迹象。四月，天气寒冷。大概是因为饥饿，这只熊表现反常。

I held my camera tripod in both hands to form a barrier as the bear rushed into me. Its huge head was level with my chest and shoulders, and the tripod stuck across its mouth. It bit down and I found myself supporting its weight. I knew I would not be able to hold it for long.
当熊冲向我时，我两手拿着相机三脚架，形成了一道屏障。它巨大的头与我的胸和肩膀齐平，三脚架卡在它的嘴上。它咬了下去，我用力支撑着它的重量，我知道我撑不了多久。

Even so, this was a fight I had to win: I was all that stood between the bear and my family, who would stand little chance of running faster than a brown bear.
即便如此，这也是我必须赢得的一场战斗：我是这只熊和我家人之间的唯一屏障，他们几乎不可能比棕熊跑得更快。

The bear hit at the camera, cutting it off the tripod. I raised my left arm to protect my face; the beast held tightly on the tripod and pressed it into my side. My arm could not move, and I sensed that my bones were going to break.
熊猛击摄像机，把它从三脚架上折断了。我举起左臂保护我的脸；熊紧紧抓住三脚架，把它压在我的身上。我的胳膊动不了，我感觉到我的骨头要断了。

Drawing back my free hand, I struck the bear as hard as I could for five to six times. The bear opened its mouth and I grasped its fur, trying to push it away. I was actually wrestling with the bear at this point. Then, as suddenly as it had begun, the fight ended. The bear moved back toward the forest, before returning for another attack — The first time I felf panic.
我收回空着的手，用力击打了熊五六下。熊张开嘴，我揪住它的皮毛，想要把它推开。我实际上和熊扭打在了一起。然后，战斗结束了，和开始一样突然。熊向森林走去，然后又回来攻击——这是我第一次感到恐慌。

Apparently satisfied that we caused no further threat, the bear moved off, destroying a fence as it went. My arm was injured, but the outcome for us could hardly have been better. I’m proud that my family reminded clear-headed when panic could have led to a very different outcome.
显然，熊很满意我们没有造成进一步的威胁，于是它离开了，一边走一边摧毁了栅栏。我的胳膊受了伤，但对我们来说，结果再好不过了。我很自豪，我的家人提醒我，恐慌时清醒的头脑可能导致完全不同的结果。