Man writes to Obama about smoking — and he writes back 男子寫信給歐巴瑪談抽菸 —他回信了！

◎管淑平

It’s been 30 years since his dad died, and Michael Powers still misses him. That’s why he wrote to President Obama urging him not to smoke so he could be there for his daughters.

鮑爾斯的爸爸已經過世30年了，而他依然思念他。這就是為什麼他要寫信給歐巴瑪總統，敦促他不要抽菸，才能陪伴在女兒身邊。

Powers, who calls himself a staunch Democrat, decided to write when he watched election night TV and heard Obama’s daughter greet him with a spirited "Hi, Daddy!"

自稱為死忠民主黨人的鮑爾斯，在選舉夜當晚看電視，聽到歐巴瑪的女兒活潑的跟老爸打招呼說「嗨，老爸」時，決定寫這封信。

"I think President Obama is the same way with his girls as my dad was with me," Powers said. "Friends."

「我想歐巴瑪總統和他女兒的關係，就像我爸和我」，鮑爾斯說，「像是朋友。」

Powers said Obama needs to be around for Malia and Sasha when they are dating： "Their dad’s gotta give some boys those dirty looks."

鮑爾斯說，當瑪莉亞和莎夏日後約會時，歐巴瑪得陪伴在她們左右，「他們的爸爸得給一些男孩臭臉看。」

Powers told Obama his dad, Benjamin, smoked three packs of cigarettes a day --and later died of lung, throat and bone cancer.

鮑爾斯告訴歐巴瑪，他父親班哲明曾經一天抽3包菸，之後死於肺癌、喉癌和骨癌。

Powers, 54, whose family has Waukegan roots, couldn’t believe it when Obama replied. He enclosed a photo of his dad. It was returned in a sealed plastic bag with Obama’s reply, he said.

當收到歐巴瑪的回信時，現年54歲、在瓦基根土生土長的鮑爾斯簡直不敢置信。他隨信附上的一張他父親的照片，被裝在一個密封塑膠袋裡，與歐巴瑪的回信一起寄回來，他說。

新聞辭典：

be there, be around：片語，在某人左右、身邊（表示支持之意）。例句：I’ll be around anytime if you need me. （如果你需要我，我隨時都在你身邊。）

give sb. a dirty look：片語，給某人臉色看。例句：He always gives me that kind of dirty looks everytime I ask him for help.（每次我請他幫忙時，他都給我臭臉看。）

enclose：動詞，與信件一起附上的文件、檔案等。例句：An explanatory leaflet is enclosed for your reference. （茲附上說明資料供你參考。）