Nolan and Maya work on a small boat called Tidy. It is a clean-up boat for the ocean. It has a flat white deck. It also has a long net arm. Its power comes from the sun.
诺兰和玛雅在一艘叫“整洁号”的小船上工作。这是一艘清理海洋垃圾的船，有一块白色的平甲板和一只长长的网臂，动力来自太阳。
Today they sail to Gray Rock. It is a tiny island two hours from the port. Wind and water bring trash there. Nobody lives on Gray Rock, so the trash stays.
今天他们驶向灰岩岛。那是一座离港口两小时航程的小岛。风和海水把垃圾带到那里。灰岩岛上没人住，所以垃圾就留在了那里。
"Are you ready?" asks Maya. She is sixteen and she is the captain.
“准备好了吗？”玛雅问。她十六岁，是船长。
"Yes," says Nolan. He is fourteen. This is his first long trip. His bag has sandwiches, water, and a coat.
“好了，”诺兰说。他十四岁，这是他第一次出远门。他的包里有三明治、水和一件外套。
The morning is bright. The sea is flat and blue. Tidy moves slowly and quietly. A screen on the deck shows the way. Nolan does not need to steer. He only watches the water.
早晨明亮，大海又平又蓝。“整洁号”慢慢地、静静地前进。甲板上的屏幕显示着航线，诺兰不用掌舵，只需要看着水面。
After one hour, they see white birds. After two hours, they see a gray rock. It is alone in the sea. It looks like a sleeping animal.
一个小时后，他们看见了白色的鸟。两个小时后，他们看见了一块灰色的岩石。它孤零零地立在海中，像一头沉睡的动物。
Maya stops the boat near the beach. They put on gloves. They put the net arm in the water. It lifts a bag, a rope, and an old cup.
玛雅把船停在海滩附近。他们戴上手套，把网臂放进水里。它捞起了一个袋子、一根绳子和一只旧杯子。
"Look," says Nolan. "A shoe!"
“看，”诺兰说，“一只鞋！”
"Just one?" asks Maya.
“只有一只？”玛雅问。
"Just one," he says. "Where is the other?"
“只有一只，”他说，“另一只在哪儿呢？”
They laugh. They work for an hour. Nolan sings a little song, and Maya sings with him. The pile on the deck gets big. There are bottles, cups, bags, and one long, blue net. The sun gets hot. Nolan eats his sandwich on the side of the boat.
他们笑了起来。他们干了一个小时的活。诺兰轻轻哼起一首小曲，玛雅也跟着他唱。甲板上的垃圾堆越来越高：瓶子、杯子、袋子，还有一张长长的蓝色渔网。太阳变得很热。诺兰坐在船舷边吃他的三明治。
Then he sees something shine in the sand. He jumps down from the boat. He walks to it. It is a glass bottle. It is old and green. Inside, there is a small piece of paper.
这时，他看见沙子里有什么东西在闪光。他从船上跳下来，走了过去。那是一只玻璃瓶，又旧又绿，里面有一小张纸。
"Maya!" he calls. "Come here!"
“玛雅！”他喊道，“快过来！”
Maya comes quickly. She looks at the bottle in his hand.
玛雅很快跑了过来。她看着他手里的瓶子。
"A message?" she says.
“是一封信？”她说。
"I think so."
“我想是的。”
Nolan pulls at the top, but it is stuck. Maya takes the bottle. She hits it softly on a rock. The top comes off. She takes out the paper. It is yellow and soft.
诺兰拔瓶塞，可是卡住了。玛雅接过瓶子，在一块石头上轻轻敲了一下。瓶塞掉了出来。她取出那张纸，纸是黄色的，软软的。
"It is a letter," she says. "Listen. 'Hello! My name is Ada. I am eight years old. I live in a house next to the sea. If you find this bottle, please write to me.'"
“是一封信，”她说，“听着：‘你好！我叫艾达，今年八岁。我住在海边的一座房子里。如果你捡到这个瓶子，请给我回信。’”
Nolan reads the paper over her shoulder. At the bottom, there is a small drawing. It shows a house and a big yellow sun. Under it is a street name and a number.
诺兰从她肩后看那张纸。纸的底部有一幅小画，画着一座房子和一个大大的黄太阳。画的下面写着一个街道名和一个门牌号。
"It is from a different country," says Maya. "Look at the date. It is eleven years old."
“这是从另一个国家来的，”玛雅说，“看看日期，已经十一年了。”
"Ada is nineteen now," says Nolan.
“艾达现在十九岁了，”诺兰说。
"Maybe she is a captain too."
“也许她也当上船长了。”
They sit on the beach. The sea makes a soft noise. The boat waits behind them. A white bird walks past and looks at their sandwiches.
他们在沙滩上坐下。海浪发出轻柔的声响，小船在他们身后等待。一只白色的鸟走过，看了看他们的三明治。
"What do we do?" Nolan asks.
“我们怎么办？”诺兰问。
"We write to her," says Maya. She takes a pen out of her pocket. "Do you have more paper?"
“我们给她写信，”玛雅说。她从口袋里掏出一支笔，“你还有纸吗？”
Nolan opens his bag. He takes out a clean sandwich bag. He turns it over. "Here," he says. "What do we write?"
诺兰打开包，拿出一只干净的三明治袋，把它翻过来。“给，”他说，“我们写什么？”
"Hello," says Maya. "We found your bottle."
“你好，”玛雅说，“我们找到了你的瓶子。”
