"But, Dad," Tony argued, "They do kill fish." "Yes," agreed Old Joe, "They kill fish, nature lets them do it. The turtle kills fish to eat and live. We kill fish too, we men. Do we kill them so we can live? No, we do it for fun. This old turtle takes what he needs. I do not kill him. I do not act like God." Tony got into the driver seat and laughed. "Dad, you have strange ideas." Old Joe walked around behind the turtle and gently pushed it with his shoe. The turtle went forward across the road and into the tall grass. He was going toward the river. Joe watched until he could not see that turtle any longer. Then he got into the car beside his son. The two men sat and looked at each other. The sun was coming up strong now, and the sky was bright. Tony started the engine. Old Joe brought out his cigarettes. They sat and smoked and looked at each other. Then they started to smile. The car moved slowly along the dirt road toward the morning sun. They did not stop until they reached the quiet waters of White River.


“爸爸，但是他们会杀死鱼啊！”托尼争辩道。 “是，”老Joe同意道，“他们是杀鱼，但是是自然决定的。海龟杀鱼是拿来吃和活命。我们也杀鱼啊。难道我们杀它也是为了活命？不，我们只是为了娱乐而已。这只老海龟那他所需的罢了。我不会杀他的，我不想像上帝那样。” 托尼坐进驾驶员位笑道：“爸爸，你的想法很奇怪。” 老Joe走到海龟背后，用脚轻轻地推了一下海龟。海龟便直接走过了道路，爬到深深地草丛中。他准备到河里去了。Joe一直看着他，知道他消失为止。然后，他走进车内坐在他儿子旁边。两个男人坐在那相互地看了看。 那时候太阳已经很耀眼了，天空也变得明亮了。托尼开动了发动机。老Joe拿出了他的烟。他们坐在那抽烟，互相看了看。便开始笑了起来。汽车顶着阳光走的很慢。知道他们到了那充满宁静湖水的White河他们才停下。