A Nine-Year-Old's Brush with Magic

佚名 / Anonymous

Every June， on the night before summer officially arrives， we renew an annual tradition at our house. Our children are given bowls and asked to collect pieces of nature that remind them of the coming season. They leave those bowls on the front of porch and we go for a walk. When we return we find fairies have transformed the bowls into ice-cream sundaes.

I’m not certain how this tradition evolved， I think I was rambling on about fairies years ago， and it all just sort of happened. But ever since， it has been one of our favorite rituals.

“When are the fairies coming？” six-year-old Anna had been asking all last June， giddy with expectation. Meanwhile， Jim， nine， was getting wise to fairies and Santa and such silly things. So he was pretty cocky as the evening approached， winking and giggling. He said he would understand if， during our walk， Mom or Dad would forget something and return home.

Wink. Wink.

Or， he proclaimed， during the walk a parent might have to run an errand in the car.

Hee， hee.

Jim had everything figured out. Or so he thought. The evening arrived， gorgeous and balmy. The children collected leaves and blades of grass， pebbles and berries， twigs and dead insects.

We set their bowls on the front porch and took off on our walk. But midway round the block， I moaned that I had forgotten my keys and needed to go back. Jim smiled a knowing grin.

“Oh wait，” I added. “I find them！ I don’t have to go back.” As we continued on our way， Jim was beginning to get a bit confused.

Near our house， I warned that the fairies might not have arrived yet—and that we might need to go around a few more blocks. Jim seemed relieved. Yes， he said， they probably hadn’t come.

Yet when we reached the porch， the bowls were in the same place we had left them—filled to their brims with ice-cream sundaes.

Anna accepted all this with complete innocence and exhilaration. But Jim was astonished， speechless， humbled. He looked up at me， at his dad， then gazed around the neighborhood in amazement.

“The fairies must have come，” he stammered as we all sat down to feast.“Maybe…is there really…was this magic？”

Jim was quiet the entire evening. I kissed Anna and said him good-night and tucked them into bed. But at 2 a.m. Jim crawled into bed next to me. “Mommy，” he whispered. “I can’t sleep. You have to tell me， Mommy. How did you do it？”

By the time a child is nine you need to answer a direct question with a direct answer. So I told him I had asked a neighbor to help us. After we left on our stroll， she had sneaked over to our house and switched the bowls. Jim smiled， chuckled in relief and thanked me for telling him. Then he cuddled up and fell asleep.

And just then， at that moment， I believed in magic too.

每年六月，在夏季正式到來的前夕，我們家中都會舉行一年一次的傳統儀式。我們要求孩子們拿著碗去收集大自然的片斷，提醒他們即將來臨的季節。他們把碗放在門廊的前面，我們就一起出去散步。當我們返回家時，發現精靈們在碗里放滿了圣代冰激淋。

我不確定這個習慣是如何發展來的，我認為也許是幾年前我在講精靈的故事時偶然想到的。但自那以后，這就成了我們最中意的儀式之一。

“精靈什么時候降臨？”去年六月，六歲的安娜一直帶著急切的期望問。同時，九歲的吉姆已經明白了精靈和圣誕老人這些近乎愚昧的事情。所以在每天晚上到來時，他都特別驕傲地眨眼和傻笑。他說他明白了，當我們散步的時候，爸爸媽媽會因為忘記一些事情而返回家的。

他眨著眼睛宣布說，當我們散步時，父母會因為有事而回到車子那里。吉姆故作明白的笑了笑。也許這就是他所想的。晚上華麗而溫和。孩子們收集葉子和草，小圓石和漿果，樹枝和死了的昆蟲。

我們把他們的碗放在門廊上，就出去散步了。但是到了中途，我嘆息道沒拿鑰匙，必須回去一趟。吉姆抿著嘴笑了。

“噢，等一下，”我喊道。“我找到了！我不用回去了。”于是我們繼續我們的路程，吉姆也開始有些疑惑了。

臨近家時，我提醒說精靈可能還沒降臨，我們還是再去別的地方走走吧。吉姆好像有些放心了。他說，確實，他們可能還沒來呢。

當我們到了門廊時，碗還在原地，放滿了圣代冰激淋。

安娜對這一切滿心歡喜。但是吉姆很驚訝，他什么也沒說，感到有些挫敗。他仰著頭看了看我，又看了看他爸爸，又驚異地看了看周圍的鄰居。

當我們都坐下品味著冰激淋時，吉姆結結巴巴地說，“精靈一定是來過了，或許這是真的……有魔力？”

吉姆整晚都很安靜。我吻過安娜，說了晚安，又掖了掖他們的被子。但是凌晨兩點，吉姆爬到我的被窩里低聲說：“媽媽，我睡不著。”

“媽媽，你必須告訴我，你是怎么做到的？”

面對一個9歲孩子的直接提問，你必須做一個干脆的回答。所以我告訴他是鄰居幫的忙。我們散步時，他悄悄走近我們的房子，把碗換了。吉姆安慰似的咯咯笑了，還謝謝我告訴了他真相，然后就抱著我睡著了。

就在那一瞬間，我也相信這世界是有魔力的。

記憶填空

1. Our children are given and asked to collect pieces of nature that remind them of the coming . They leave those bowls on the front porch and we go for a . When we return we find fairies have transformed the bowls ice-cream sundaes.

2. Yet when we the porch， the bowls were in the same we had left them—filled to their brims ice-cream sundaes.

3. After we left our stroll， she had sneaked over to our house and switched the bowls. Jim ， chuckled in relief and thanked me telling him. Then he cuddled up and asleep.

佳句翻譯

1. 我不確定這個習慣是如何發展來的，我認為也許是幾年前我在講精靈的故事時偶然想到的。

2. 臨近家時，我提醒說精靈可能還沒降臨，我們還是再去別的地方走走吧。

3. 就在那一瞬間，我也相信這世界是有魔力的。

短語應用

1. Our children are given bowls and asked to collect pieces of nature that remind them of the coming season.

remind of：提醒；使記起；使回想起

2. Jim had everything figured out.

figure out：解決；算出；想出；理解；斷定