When you tell someone something bad about yourself and you're scared they won't love you anymore.But then you get surprised because not only do they still love you,they love you even more.

當(dāng)你把一些關(guān)于自己的不好的事情告訴別人時(shí)，你生怕他們不再愛你了。然而，你卻驚喜地發(fā)現(xiàn)他們不但愛你如故，而且愛得更深了。

Little Prince　小王子

◎Antoine de Saiot-Exupery

It was then that the fox appeared.

"Good morning,"said the fox.

"Good morning,"the little prince responded politely,although when he turned around he saw nothing.

"I am right here,"the voice said,"under the apple tree."

"Who are you?"asked the little prince,and added,"You are very pretty to look at."

"I am a fox,"the fox said.

"Come and play with me,"proposed the little prince."I am so unhappy."

"I cannot play with you,"the fox said."I am not tamed."

"Ah!Please excuse me,"said the little prince.

But,after some thought,he added:

"What does that mean—"tame"?"

"You do not live here,"said the fox."What is it that you are looking for?"

"I am looking for men,"said the little prince."What does that mean—"tame"?"

"Men,"said the fox."They have guns,and they hunt.It is very disturbing.They also raise chickens.These are their only interests.Are you looking for chickens?"

"No,"said the little prince."I am looking for friends.What does that mean—"tame"?"

"It is an act too often neglected,"said the fox."It means to establish ties."

"'To establish ties'?"

"Just that,"said the fox."To me,you are still nothing more than a little boy who is just like a hundred thousand other little boys.And I have no need of you.And you,on your part,have no need of me.To you,I am nothing more than a fox like a hundred thousand other foxes.But if you tame me,then we shall need each other.To me,you will be unique in all the world.To you,I shall be unique in all the world..."

"I am beginning to understand,"said the little prince."There is a flower...I think that she has tamed me..."

"It is possible,"said the fox."On the Earth one sees all sorts of things."

"Oh,but this is not on the Earth!"said the little prince.

The fox seemed perplexed,and very curious.

"On another planet?"

"Yes."

"Are there hunters on that planet?"

"No."

"Ah,that is interesting!Are there chickens?"

"No."

"Nothing is perfect,"sighed the fox.

But he came back to his idea.

"My life is very monotonous,"the fox said."I hunt chickens;men hunt me.All the chickens are just alike,and all the men are just alike.And,in consequence,I am a little bored.But if you tame me,it will be as if the sun came to shine on my life.I shall know the sound of a step that will be different from all the others.Other steps send me hurrying back underneath the ground.Yours will call me,like music,out of my burrow.And then look:you see the grain-fields down yonder?I do not eat bread.Wheat is of no use to me.The wheat fields have nothing to say to me.And that is sad.But you have hair that is the color of gold.Think how wonderful that will be when you have tamed me!The grain,which is also golden,will bring me back the thought of you.And I shall love to listen to the wind in the wheat..."

The fox gazed at the little prince,for a long time.

"Please—tame me!"he said.

"I want to,very much,"the little prince replied."But I have not much time.I have friends to discover,and a great many things to understand."

"One only understands the things that one tames,"said the fox."Men have no more time to understand anything.They buy things all ready made at the shops.But there is no shop anywhere where one can buy friendship,and so men have no friends any more.If you want a friend,tame me..."

"What must I do,to tame you?"asked the little prince.

"You must be very patient,"replied the fox."First you will sit down at a little distance from me—like that—in the grass.I shall look at you out of the corner of my eye,and you will say nothing.Words are the source of misunderstandings.But you will sit a little closer to me,every day..."

The next day the little prince came back.

"It would have been better to come back at the same hour,"said the fox."If,for example,you come at four o'clock in the afternoon,then at three o'clock I shall begin to be happy.I shall feel happier and happier as the hour advances.At four o'clock,I shall already be worrying and jumping about.I shall show you how happy I am!But if you come at just any time,I shall never know at what hour my heart is to be ready to greet you...One must observe the proper rites..."

"What is a rite?"asked the little prince.

"Those also are actions too often neglected,"said the fox."They are what make one day different from other days,one hour from other hours.There is a rite,for example,among my hunters.Every Thursday they dance with the village girls.So Thursday is a wonderful day for me!I can take a walk as far as the vineyards.But if the hunters danced at just any time,every day would be like every other day,and I should never have any vacation at all."

So the little prince tamed the fox.And when the hour of his departure drew near—

"Ah,"said the fox,"I shall cry."

"It is your own fault,"said the little prince."I never wished you any sort of harm;but you wanted me to tame you..."

"Yes,that is so,"said the fox.

"But now you are going to cry!"said the little prince.

"Yes,that is so,"said the fox.

"Then it has done you no good at all!"

"It has done me good,"said the fox,"because of the color of the wheat fields."And then he added:

"Go and look again at the roses.You will understand now that yours is unique in all the world.Then come back to say goodbye to me,and I will make you a present of a secret."

The little prince went away,to look again at the roses.

"You are not at all like my rose,"he said."As yet you are nothing.No one has tamed you,and you have tamed no one.You are like my fox when I first knew him.He was only a fox like a hundred thousand other foxes.But I have made him my friend,and now he is unique in all the world."

And the roses were very much embarrassed.

"You are beautiful,but you are empty,"he went on."One could not die for you.To be sure,an ordinary passerby would think that my rose looked just like you—the rose that belongs to me.But in herself alone she is more important than all the hundreds of you other roses:because it is she that I have watered;because it is she that I have put under the glass globe;because it is she that I have sheltered behind the screen;because it is for her that I have killed the caterpillars(except the two or three that we saved to become butterflies);because it is she that I have listened to,when she grumbled,or boasted,or ever sometimes when she said nothing.Because she is my rose."

And he went back to meet the fox.

"Goodbye,"he said.

"Goodbye,"said the fox."And now here is my secret,a very simple secret:It is only with the heart that one can see rightly;what is essential is invisible to the eye."

"What is essential is invisible to the eye,"the little prince repeated,so that he would be sure to remember.

"It is the time you have wasted for your rose that makes your rose so important."

"It is the time I have wasted for my rose—"said the little prince,so that he would be sure to remember.

"Men have forgotten this truth,"said the fox."But you must not forget it.You become responsible,forever,for what you have tamed.You are responsible for your rose..."

"I am responsible for my rose,"the little prince repeated,so that he would be sure to remember.

這時(shí)，一只狐貍出現(xiàn)了。

“早上好。”狐貍說。

“早上好。”小王子十分有禮貌地回答。可當(dāng)他轉(zhuǎn)過頭去時(shí)，卻什么也沒看到。

“我在這兒，在蘋果樹的下面呢！”一個(gè)聲音傳來。

“你是誰？”小王子問。他又接著說：“你看起來好漂亮啊！”

“我是一只狐貍。”狐貍說。

小王子提議：“來跟我一起玩吧！我現(xiàn)在很不開心。”

狐貍回答道：“恐怕我不能跟你一起玩。因?yàn)槲疫€沒有被馴養(yǎng)。”

“啊！對(duì)不起。”小王子說。

可是，他想了一會(huì)兒，說道：

“什么叫做‘馴養(yǎng)’呀？”

“你不是這里的人吧！”狐貍說。“你在找什么？”

“我在找人，”小王子說，“那什么叫做‘馴養(yǎng)’呢？”

“人！”狐貍說。“人類有槍，他們會(huì)打獵。真是討厭極了。可是人類會(huì)養(yǎng)雞，那是他們唯一的愛好。你在找雞嗎？”

“不是，”小王子回答道，“我在找朋友。什么叫做‘馴養(yǎng)’啊？”

“那是一件常常被人們遺忘的事情。”狐貍說。“馴養(yǎng)就是建立一種關(guān)系的意思。”

“建立一種關(guān)系？”

“對(duì)呀，”狐貍說，“對(duì)我而言，你只是一個(gè)小男孩，就像其他千千萬萬個(gè)小男孩一樣。我不需要你，同樣你也不需要我。對(duì)你來說，我只是一只狐貍，就像其他千千萬萬只狐貍一樣。但是，如果你馴養(yǎng)了我，我們將會(huì)彼此需要。那么對(duì)我來說，你就是世上獨(dú)一無二的了。而我也會(huì)成為你的唯一……”

“我有點(diǎn)明白了，”小王子說，“有一朵花……我想她已經(jīng)馴養(yǎng)了我……”

“很有可能，”狐貍說，“地球上什么樣的事都有可能發(fā)生。”

“噢！可這件事并不是發(fā)生在地球上！”小王子說。

狐貍很困惑，也很好奇。

“在另一個(gè)星球上？”

“對(duì)呀。”

“那個(gè)星球上有獵人嗎？”

“沒有。”

“啊！好有趣！那兒有雞嗎？”

“沒有。”

“世上沒有完美的事情。”狐貍嘆了一口氣。

狐貍馬上又接上剛才的話題。

“我的生活十分無趣，”狐貍說，“我追捕雞，而獵人追捕我。所有的雞都長(zhǎng)得很像，所有的獵人也都長(zhǎng)得差不多。因此，我覺得有點(diǎn)厭煩了。但是，如果你馴養(yǎng)了我，我的生活就會(huì)充滿陽光。你的腳步聲對(duì)我來說是與眾不同的。其他人的腳步聲只會(huì)讓我急忙躲到地底下。而你的腳步聲就像音樂一樣，將我召喚出洞穴。那么，你看到遠(yuǎn)處的那片麥田了嗎？我不吃面包。對(duì)我來說，麥子是毫無價(jià)值的。關(guān)于麥田，我也無話可說。這聽起來似乎很可悲。但是，你有一頭金色的頭發(fā)。如果你馴養(yǎng)了我，那該多么美好啊！金黃色的麥穗就能讓我想起你。我也會(huì)喜歡傾聽風(fēng)兒拂動(dòng)麥穗的聲音……”

狐貍盯著小王子，看了許久。

“求求你——馴養(yǎng)我吧！”狐貍央求道。

“我很想，”小王子回答，“可我沒有太多時(shí)間。我想交朋友，我還想弄懂很多事情呢！”

“你只能了解你所馴養(yǎng)的東西，”狐貍說，“人類沒有多余的時(shí)間去了解其他東西。他們從商店里購買現(xiàn)成的。但是，沒有商店出售友誼，所以人類沒有朋友。如果你想交朋友，那就馴養(yǎng)我吧……”

“如果想要馴養(yǎng)你，我該做些什么呢？”小王子問道。

“你必須要非常有耐心，”狐貍回答，“首先，你必須坐得離我遠(yuǎn)一點(diǎn)，就像那樣，坐在不遠(yuǎn)處的草叢里。我會(huì)不經(jīng)意地瞟你一眼。這時(shí)，你千萬別多說什么，因?yàn)檠哉Z會(huì)造成誤會(huì)。這樣，你就可以一天天地靠近我了……”

第二天，小王子又來了。

“要是你每天來的時(shí)間都一樣，那就好了。”狐貍說，“比如說，如果你下午四點(diǎn)來，那么三點(diǎn)開始我就會(huì)很開心。隨著時(shí)間一分一秒臨近，我會(huì)越來越開心。到了四點(diǎn)的時(shí)候，我會(huì)變得坐立不安。我要在你面前表現(xiàn)得十分開心。但是，如果你來的時(shí)間飄忽不定，我就不知道該在什么時(shí)候準(zhǔn)備好迎接你的心情了……畢竟，小小的迎接儀式還是需要的……”

“什么是儀式呢？”小王子問道。

“這也是一些很容易被遺忘的事情，”狐貍說，“儀式能讓某個(gè)日子和其他日子不同，讓某個(gè)時(shí)刻和其他時(shí)刻不同。比如說，那些追捕我的獵人就有一種儀式。每個(gè)星期四，他們就會(huì)和村子里的女孩們一起跳舞。所以呀，對(duì)我來說，星期四就是個(gè)美好的日子！我可以散步，一直散到葡萄園那兒。然而，如果獵人們不定時(shí)來跳舞，天天都那樣，那我永遠(yuǎn)也不會(huì)有假日了。”

就這樣，小王子馴養(yǎng)了那只狐貍。當(dāng)分別的時(shí)刻慢慢臨近時(shí)——

“啊！”狐貍說，“我好想哭。”

“這就是你自己的錯(cuò)了，”小王子說，“我從來沒想過要傷害你，是你讓我馴養(yǎng)你的……”

“是啊，你說的沒錯(cuò)。”狐貍說。

“但是現(xiàn)在你開始哭了！”小王子說。

“是啊，你說的沒錯(cuò)。”狐貍說。

“看來馴養(yǎng)并沒給你帶來什么好處啊！”

“有好處的，”狐貍說，“因?yàn)榻瘘S色的麥田。”過了一會(huì)，狐貍又接著說：

“去看看那些玫瑰吧！這樣你就會(huì)明白你的那朵玫瑰是獨(dú)一無二的。然后你再回來和我告別。到時(shí)我再告訴你一個(gè)秘密，作為禮物。”

小王子離開了。他要去看看那些玫瑰。

“你根本就不是我的玫瑰，”他說，“因?yàn)槟銈儗?duì)我來說什么都不是。沒人馴養(yǎng)你們，而你們也沒馴養(yǎng)過任何人。你們就像我的狐貍以前那樣。他跟其他千千萬萬的狐貍沒什么兩樣。但是，我已經(jīng)和他成為了朋友，所以現(xiàn)在對(duì)我來說，他是世上獨(dú)一無二的。”

玫瑰們尷尬極了。

“你們很美，但你們也很空虛，”他接著說，“沒有一個(gè)人愿意為你們而死。當(dāng)然了，一個(gè)普通的過路人也許會(huì)覺得你們跟那朵屬于我的玫瑰很像。然而，單單一朵玫瑰就勝過你們?nèi)俊Ｒ驗(yàn)樗俏揖臐补嗟拿倒澹灰驗(yàn)樗俏曳旁诓Ａ粽窒碌拿倒澹灰驗(yàn)樗俏也卦诒Ｗo(hù)板后面的玫瑰；為了她我愿意去打毛毛蟲（只留下兩三只，好讓它們變成蝴蝶）；因?yàn)樗俏以敢饧?xì)心聆聽的玫瑰，不管是牢騷，吹噓或沉默。一切只因她是我的玫瑰。”

然后，小王子又回到了狐貍身邊。

“再見。”他說。

“再見，”狐貍說，“我的秘密其實(shí)很簡(jiǎn)單：只有用心才能看清事物的本質(zhì)。肉眼無法看到真正重要的東西。”

“肉眼無法看到真正重要的東西，”小王子重復(fù)著狐貍的話，想要把它記在心里。

“因?yàn)槟銉A注了很多心血在玫瑰身上，所以她才會(huì)那么重要。”

“因?yàn)槲覂A注了很多心血在玫瑰身上……”小王子重復(fù)著，生怕自己忘記。

“人類已然忘了這個(gè)真理，”狐貍說，“但你必須記住它。你要永遠(yuǎn)為你所馴養(yǎng)的東西負(fù)責(zé)。你要為你的玫瑰負(fù)責(zé)……”

“我要為我的玫瑰負(fù)責(zé)，”小王子重復(fù)著，他要讓這句話深深地烙進(jìn)心里。

美麗語錄

Among those people that appear in our life,some are to teach us,some to comfort us,some to share and some to love.

在我們生命中出現(xiàn)的人，一些給我們上課，一些讓我們?nèi)械挠脕矸謸?dān)分享，有的用來真愛。

Peeling Away Artifice for the Pure Original　回歸童真

◎Roy H.Barnacle

Sarah came running in."Look what I found."Over the top of the paper I was reading came a crispy,crumbling long object that caused me to jump.It was a snake skin that had been shed by one of our many garden snakes.

"Isn't it beautiful?"said my wide-eyed seven-year-old.

I stared at the organic wrapper and thought to myself that it really wasn't that beautiful,but I have learned never to appear nonchalant or jaded with children.Everything they see for the first time is elementary to their sense of beauty and creativity;they see only merit and excellence in the world until educated otherwise.

"Why does it do this?"Sarah asked.

Robert,ever the innocent comedian,said,"We have a naked snake in our garden!"

I also try to customize every opportunity to teach my children that there is almost always something beyond the obvious;that there is something else going on besides what they see in front of them."Snakes shed their skin because they need to renew themselves."I explained.As it's so often the case in my family,the original subject leads to another and another,until we are discussing something quite different.

"Why do they need to renew themselves?"Sarah asked.

Robert quipped,"Cos they don't like who they are and they want to be someone else."

Sarah and I politely ignored her brother.I suddenly remembered an article on this page many years ago where the writer was expressing her concept of renewal.She used layers of paper over a wall to describe how we hide our original selves,and said that by peeling away those layers one by one;we see the underlying original beneath.

"We often need to shed our skins,those coatings and facades that we cover ourselves with."I said to my now absorbed daughter."We outgrow some things and find other stuff unwanted or unnecessary.This snake no longer needs this skin.It is probably too stiff and crinkly for him,and he probably doesn't think he looks as smart in it as he once did.Like buying a new suit."

Of course,I'm sure this explanation won't sit well with bona fide naturalists.But Sarah was getting the point.As we talked,I knew that she began to comprehend,albeit slightly,that renewal is part of progress;that we need to take a good look at ourselves,and our rooms and schoolwork and creativity and spirituality,and see what we need to keep and what we need to cast off.I was careful to point out that this is a natural process,not one to be forced.

"Snakes don't peel off their skin when they feel like it."I explained."It happens as a natural consequence of their growth."

"I see,Dad."said Sarah and jumped off my lap,grabbed the snakeskin,and ran off.

I hoped she would remember this.That often,in order to find our real selves underneath the layers of community and culture with which we cloak ourselves year after year,we need to start examining these layers.We need to gently peel some away,as we recognize them to be worthless,unnecessary,or flawed,or at best,store the discarded ones as mementoes of our promotion to a better vitality or spirit.

莎拉興沖沖地跑了進(jìn)來，“看我找到什么了。”那時(shí)我正在看書。突然，一個(gè)卷卷的、皺皺的、長(zhǎng)長(zhǎng)的東西出現(xiàn)在書上。我嚇得跳了起來。定睛一看，原來是蛇皮，想必是花園中的哪條蛇蛻皮留下來的。

“是不是很漂亮呀？”7歲的小莎拉問道，兩只眼睛睜得大大的。

我盯著那塊自然脫落的蛇皮，心想：“它真的沒那么漂亮。”然而，我早就學(xué)會(huì)了不在孩子面前表現(xiàn)出冷漠和膩煩。因?yàn)閷?duì)孩子而言，與世間萬物的第一次親密接觸會(huì)影響他們的審美觀和創(chuàng)造性。未被教導(dǎo)如何辨認(rèn)世間丑惡之前，他們眼中的世界只有美德和功績(jī)。

“蛇為什么要蛻皮呢？”莎拉問道。

羅伯特，這個(gè)曾經(jīng)做過天真喜劇演員的人答道，“這樣我們的花園里就有了一條沒穿衣服的蛇啦！”

我也會(huì)抓住每一次機(jī)會(huì)告訴我的孩子：有些事情他們可能常常無法理解；除了呈現(xiàn)在他們眼前的東西，另外一些事情也正在悄然發(fā)生。“蛇蛻皮是為了替自己換上一套新衣服呀！”我這樣解釋道。在我們家，這樣的情況時(shí)常發(fā)生：最初的話題卻能引出許許多多各不相同的話題。直到最后，我們討論的居然是一個(gè)截然不同的新話題。

“為什么它們要換上新衣服呢？”莎拉問道。

“因?yàn)樗鼈儾幌矚g自己的樣子，它們想要變成別人唄！”羅伯特很不屑地答道。

我和莎拉很委婉地就把她的哥哥晾在一旁。突然間，我想起多年前在這本書上看到的一篇文章。文章的作者十分巧妙地表達(dá)了自己對(duì)于“更新”的理解。她用一層層墻紙來描述我們是如何隱藏最真實(shí)的自我。用她的話說，將這些墻紙一層層撕下時(shí)，我們看到的就是深埋其中的純真自我。

“我們常常需要脫去那些用來自我掩飾的外在的東西。”我這樣向我那個(gè)全神貫注的女兒解釋。“我們會(huì)長(zhǎng)出一些新的東西。這樣，我們就會(huì)覺得其他一些東西是無用的，多余的。這條蛇就是不再需要這身皮了。也許是因?yàn)檫@身皮太硬太皺。或者，它覺得自己穿上這身衣服時(shí)不再像以前那樣英俊瀟灑。總之啊，它就像是給自己買了一套新衣服！”

當(dāng)然，我深知這樣的解釋無法讓真正的自然主義者滿意。但莎拉明白了。談話過程中，我意識(shí)到她已然開始淺淺地領(lǐng)悟著：“更新”意味著進(jìn)步；我們必須仔細(xì)審視自己、房間、家庭作業(yè)、創(chuàng)造性和靈魂。看看哪些值得保留，而哪些應(yīng)該摒棄。我小心翼翼地告訴她，這是一種自然的過程，而不是被迫的結(jié)果。

“如果蛇喜歡它的皮，它就不會(huì)蛻皮的。”我解釋道。“蛻皮是蛇成長(zhǎng)過程中自然而然產(chǎn)生的結(jié)果。”

“爸爸，我明白啦！”莎拉一邊說一邊從我的膝上跳下。她抓起那塊蛇皮，跑開了。

我希望她能記住我說過的這些話。通常，為了找尋深埋于社會(huì)和文化里的純真自我，我們必須開始審視這些外在的東西。當(dāng)我們意識(shí)到它們已然毫無價(jià)值，不再有用，不再完美時(shí)，我們就該將其輕輕地脫去。或者，最好將這些逝去的美好封存起來，找到純真的自我供我們回味！

美麗語錄

Be yourself.That's when you're beautiful.

做你自己，那才是你的美麗時(shí)刻。

A Mad Tea-party　發(fā)瘋的茶會(huì)

◎Lewis Carroll

There was a table set out under a tree in front of the house,and the March Hare and the Hatter were having tea at it:a Dormouse was sitting between them,fast asleep,and the other two were using it as a cushion,resting their elbows on it,and talking over its head."Very uncomfortable for the Dormouse,"thought Alice;"only,as it's asleep,I suppose it doesn't mind."

The table was a large one,but the three were all crowded together at one corner of it."No room!No room!"they cried out when they saw Alice coming.

"There's plenty of room!"said Alice indignantly,and she sat down in a large arm-chair at one end of the table.

"Have some wine,"the March Hare said in an encouraging tone.

Alice looked all round the table,but there was nothing on it but tea."I don't see any wine,"she remarked.

"There isn't any,"said the March Hare.

"Then it wasn't very civil of you to offer it,"said Alice angrily.

"It wasn't very civil of you to sit down without being invited,"said the March Hare.

"I didn't know it was your table,"said Alice;"it's laid for a great many more than three."

"Your hair wants cutting,"said the Hatter.He had been looking at Alice for some time with great curiosity,and this was his first speech.

"You should learn not to make personal remarks,"Alice said with some severity;"it's very rude."

The Hatter opened his eyes very wide on hearing this;but all he said was,"Why is a raven like a writing-desk?"

"Come,we shall have some fun now!"thought Alice."I'm glad they've begun asking riddles.—I believe I can guess that,"she added aloud.

"Do you mean that you think you can find out the answer to it?"said the March Hare.

"Exactly so,"said Alice.

"Then you should say what you mean,"the March Hare went on.

"I do,"Alice hastily replied;"at least—at least I mean what I say—that's the same thing,you know."

"Not the same thing a bit!"said the Hatter."You might just as well say that"I see what I eat'is the same thing as"I eat what I see"!"

"You might just as well say,"added the March Hare,"that"I like what I get'is the same thing as"I get what I like"!"

"You might just as well say,"added the Dormouse,who seemed to be talking in his sleep,"that"I breathe when I sleep'is the same thing as"I sleep when I breathe"!"

"It is the same thing with you,"said the Hatter,and here the conversation dropped,and the party sat silent for a minute,while Alice thought over all she could remember about ravens and writing-desks,which wasn't much.

The Hatter was the first to break the silence."What day of the month is it?"he said,turning to Alice:he had taken his watch out of his pocket,and was looking at it uneasily,shaking it every now and then,and holding it to his ear.

Alice considered a little,and then said"The fourth."

"Two days wrong!"sighed the Hatter."I told you butter wouldn't suit the works!"he added looking angrily at the March Hare.

"It was the best butter,"the March Hare meekly replied.

"Yes,but some crumbs must have got in as well,"the Hatter grumbled,"you shouldn't have put it in with the bread-knife."

The March Hare took the watch and looked at it gloomily;then he dipped it into his cup of tea,and looked at it again;but he could think of nothing better to say than his first remark,"It was the best butter,you know."

Alice had been looking over his shoulder with some curiosity."What a funny watch!"she remarked."It tells the day of the month,and doesn't tell what o'clock it is!"

"Why should it?"muttered the Hatter."Does your watch tell you what year it is?"

"Of course not,"Alice replied very readily,"but that's because it stays the same year for such a long time together."

"Which is just the case with mine,"said the Hatter.

Alice felt dreadfully puzzled.The Hatter's remark seemed to have no sort of meaning in it,and yet it was certainly English."I don't quite understand you,"she said,as politely as she could.

"The Dormouse is asleep again,"said the Hatter,and he poured a little hot tea upon its nose.

The Dormouse shook its head impatiently,and said,without opening its eyes,"Of course,of course;just what I was going to remark myself."

"Have you guessed the riddle yet?"the Hatter said,turning to Alice again.

"No,I give it up,"Alice replied,"what's the answer?"

"I haven't the slightest idea,"said the Hatter.

"Nor I."said the March Hare.

Alice sighed wearily."I think you might do something better with the time,"she said,"than waste it in asking riddles that have no answers."

"If you knew Time as well as I do,"said the Hatter,"you wouldn't talk about wasting it.It's him."

"I don't know what you mean,"said Alice.

"Of course you don't!"the Hatter said,tossing his head contemptuously."I dare say you never even spoke to Time!"

"Perhaps not,"Alice cautiously replied,"but I know I have to beat time when I learn music."

"Ah!That accounts for it,"said the Hatter."He won't stand beating.Now,if you only kept on good terms with him,he'd do almost anything you liked with the clock.For instance,suppose it were nine o'clock in the morning,just time to begin lessons;you'd only have to whisper a hint to Time,and round goes the clock in a twinkling!Half-past one,time for dinner!"

"I only wish it was,"the March Hare said to itself in a whisper.

"That would be grand,certainly,"said Alice thoughtfully,"but then—I shouldn't be hungry for it,you know."

"Not at first,perhaps,"said the Hatter,"but you could keep it to half-past one as long as you liked."

"Is that the way you manage?"Alice asked.

The Hatter shook his head mournfully."Not I!"he replied."We quarreled last March—just before he went mad,you know—"(pointing with his tea spoon at the March Hare),"—it was at the great concert given by the Queen of Hearts,and I had to sing:

‘Twinkle,twinkle,little bat!How I wonder what you're at!’

"You know the song,perhaps?"

"I've heard something like it."said Alice.

"It goes on,you know,"the Hatter continued,"in this way—

"Up above the world you fly,like a tea-tray in the sky.Twinkle,twinkle—""

Here the Dormouse shook itself,and began singing in its sleep"Twinkle,twinkle,twinkle,twinkle—"and went on so long that they had to pinch it to make it stop.

"Well,I'd hardly finished the first verse,"said the Hatter,"when the Queen jumped up and bawled out,"He's murdering the time!Off with his head!"

"How dreadfully savage!"exclaimed Alice.

"And ever since that,"the Hatter went on in a mournful tone,"he won't do a thing I ask!It's always six o'clock now."

A bright idea came into Alice's head."Is that the reason so many tea-things are put out here?"she asked.

"Yes,that's it,"said the Hatter with a sigh:"it's always tea-time,and we've no time to wash the things between whiles."

"Then you keep moving round,I suppose?"said Alice.

"Exactly so,"said the Hatter:"as the things get used up."

"But what happens when you come to the beginning again?"Alice ventured to ask.

"Suppose we change the subject,"the March Hare interrupted,yawning."I'm getting tired of this.I vote the young lady tells us a story."

From Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

屋前的大樹下擺放著一張桌子。三月兔和帽匠正在桌旁喝茶。一只睡鼠在他們中間酣睡著。可那兩個(gè)家伙卻把睡鼠當(dāng)成墊子，把胳膊支在它身上，而且就在它的頭上聊天。“睡鼠應(yīng)該很不舒服吧！”愛麗絲想，“可它睡著了，也就不在乎了吧！”

桌子很大，可他們?nèi)齻€(gè)都擠在桌子的一角。“沒地方啦！沒地方啦！”他們看見愛麗絲走過來就開始大聲嚷嚷。

“這兒有的是地方呀！”愛麗絲生氣地說道。接著她就在桌子一端的大扶手椅上坐了下來。

“想喝酒嗎？”三月兔熱情地問道。

愛麗絲掃視了一下桌面，發(fā)現(xiàn)除了茶什么也沒有。“我沒看見酒！”愛麗絲回答。

“這兒根本沒有酒。”三月兔說。

“那你邀請(qǐng)我喝酒也太不禮貌了。”愛麗絲生氣地說道。

“那你沒有受到邀請(qǐng)就坐下來也是不太禮貌的。”三月兔說。

“我不知道這是你的桌子，”愛麗絲說，“這張桌子可以坐下好多人呢！遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)不止三個(gè)。”

“你的頭發(fā)該剪了。”帽匠說。他十分好奇地看了愛麗絲一會(huì)兒。這是他第一次開口說話。

“你必須懂得不要隨便評(píng)論別人，”愛麗絲一臉嚴(yán)肅地說道，“這是很不禮貌的。”

聽到這句話，帽匠的眼睛睜得大大的。最后他說：“一只烏鴉為什么像一張寫字臺(tái)呢？”

“來吧！現(xiàn)在我們有好玩的事了！”愛麗絲想，“我很高興他們開始猜謎語了。”“我覺得我能猜出來。”她接著大聲說道。

“你的意思是你找到這個(gè)謎語的答案了？”三月兔說。

“沒錯(cuò)。”愛麗絲說。

“那你說說你的想法吧！”三月兔接著說。

“我就是這樣的，”愛麗絲急忙回答，“至少……至少凡是我說的就是我想的，你也知道這是一回事。”

“根本不是一回事！”帽匠說，“那么你說‘凡是我吃的東西我都能看見’跟‘凡是我看見的東西我都能吃’是一樣的？”

三月兔補(bǔ)了一句：“那樣的話，‘我得到的東西我都喜歡’跟‘我喜歡的東西我都能得到’也是一樣的咯？”

睡鼠也說了一句，就像說夢(mèng)話那樣：“也就是說‘我睡覺時(shí)要呼吸’跟‘我呼吸時(shí)要睡覺’也是一樣的啦！”

“這對(duì)你來說還真是一樣。”帽匠接著睡鼠的話說道。談話告一段落，大家沉默了一會(huì)兒。這時(shí)，愛麗絲費(fèi)勁腦汁想著有關(guān)烏鴉和寫字臺(tái)的事，可她知道的實(shí)在不多。

帽匠最先打破沉默，“今天是幾號(hào)呀？”他一面問愛麗絲，一面從口袋里掏出一只懷表，不安地看著，還不停地?fù)u晃，拿到耳朵旁聽聽。

愛麗絲想了想說：“四號(hào)。”

“錯(cuò)了兩天！”帽匠嘆了一口氣，“我跟你說過不該加黃油的！”他生氣地瞪著三月兔說。

“這是最好的黃油了。”三月兔弱弱地解釋。

“沒錯(cuò)。可一些面包屑也掉進(jìn)去了，”帽匠抱怨著，“你不該把黃油和切面包的刀放在一起。”

三月兔從帽匠手里接過手表看了看，他懊惱極了。接著他把表泡在自己的茶杯里，過了一會(huì)又拿起來看了看。但是，除了剛開始說的那句“這是最好的黃油”之外，他再也無話可說了。

愛麗絲好奇地透過他的肩膀看了看。“好奇怪的表！”她說，“它能告訴我們幾月幾號(hào)，卻不能告訴我們幾點(diǎn)！”

“為什么要告訴時(shí)間？”帽匠嘀咕著，“你的手表能告訴你今年是哪一年嗎？”

“當(dāng)然不能啦！”愛麗絲胸有成竹地答道，“那是因?yàn)槟攴菰诤荛L(zhǎng)時(shí)間內(nèi)都是不變的。”

“這也是我的表無法說明時(shí)間的原因。”帽匠說。

愛麗絲困惑極了。帽匠的話聽起來似乎沒有任何意義，但不可否認(rèn)他說的是標(biāo)準(zhǔn)的英語。“我不是很明白你說的話。”她盡可能禮貌地說道。

“睡鼠又睡著了。”帽匠說。然后他在睡鼠的鼻子上倒了一點(diǎn)熱茶。

睡鼠急忙晃了晃頭，還沒睜開眼睛就說：“當(dāng)然，當(dāng)然，這正是我要說的。”

“你猜出這個(gè)謎語了嗎？”帽匠再一次問愛麗絲。

“還沒呢！我猜不出來。”愛麗絲回答，“謎底是什么？”

“我也不知道。”帽匠說。

“我也不知道。”三月兔說。

愛麗絲輕輕地嘆了一口氣說：“我覺得你們可以做一些更有意義的事情，不應(yīng)該把時(shí)間浪費(fèi)在沒有謎底的謎語上。”

“如果你也像我一樣熟悉時(shí)間，”帽匠說，“你就不會(huì)喊它‘寶貴的時(shí)間’而會(huì)是‘老朋友’了。”

“我不明白你說的是什么意思。”愛麗絲說。

“你當(dāng)然不明白啦！”帽匠很得意地晃著頭說，“我敢說你從來沒有跟時(shí)間對(duì)話過。”

“好像沒有。”愛麗絲小心翼翼地回答，“可我在學(xué)唱歌的時(shí)候總是按著時(shí)間打拍子的。”

“啊！糟糕了。”帽匠說，“他最討厭人家打他了。現(xiàn)在，如果你跟他保持友好關(guān)系，他會(huì)為你做任何事情，他能讓鐘表乖乖聽你的話。就比如說吧，假設(shè)現(xiàn)在是早上九點(diǎn)，是你上學(xué)的時(shí)間。這時(shí)你只要對(duì)時(shí)間說上一句悄悄話，鐘表上的時(shí)間就會(huì)馬上顯示為下午一點(diǎn)半，就變成吃飯的時(shí)間啦！”

“我真希望這是真的。”三月兔輕聲地自言自語著。

“如果真是那樣就好了。”愛麗絲若有所思地說，“可那時(shí)候我還不餓的話怎么辦？”

“剛開始的時(shí)候是不餓，”帽匠說，“但是只要你喜歡，你可以讓時(shí)鐘一直停留在一點(diǎn)半。”

“你就是這樣做的嗎？”愛麗絲問。

帽匠傷心地?fù)u了搖頭回答：“我再也不能那樣做了。三月份的時(shí)候我和時(shí)間吵架了，就是在他發(fā)瘋前——”（他用自己的茶匙指著三月兔），“記得那是在紅心皇后舉辦的一次大型音樂會(huì)上，我演唱了：

‘一閃一閃的小蝙蝠！我多想知道你在哪兒！’”？

“你聽過這首歌嗎？”

“我好像聽過類似的歌。”愛麗絲說。

“我接著唱，”帽匠繼續(xù)說道，“就像這樣——

‘你飛翔于天際，就像一只盤旋在空中的茶盤。閃呀，閃呀……’”

這時(shí)睡鼠搖了搖身體，在睡夢(mèng)中唱了起來：“閃呀，閃呀，閃呀，閃呀……”睡鼠唱得太久了，直到他們捅了他一下才停下來。

“我還沒唱完第一段呢，”帽匠說，“皇后就大喊‘他簡(jiǎn)直是在糟蹋時(shí)間，把他的頭砍下來！’”

“太殘忍了吧！”愛麗絲嚷道。

“就是從那以后，”帽匠傷心地接著說，“時(shí)間再也不愿為我做任何事情了。它就一直停留在六點(diǎn)鐘。”

愛麗絲的腦中突然閃現(xiàn)一個(gè)好主意：“這就是為什么這兒有這么多茶具嗎？”她問。

“對(duì)呀，就是這個(gè)緣故。”帽匠嘆了一口氣說，“我們只有喝茶的時(shí)間，卻沒有洗茶具的時(shí)間。”

“所以你們才圍著桌子轉(zhuǎn)？”愛麗絲說。

“沒錯(cuò)。”帽匠說，“只要茶具臟了，我們就挪到下一個(gè)位置。”

“可是你們轉(zhuǎn)回到第一個(gè)位置時(shí)又該怎么辦呢？”愛麗絲進(jìn)一步問道。

“我們換個(gè)話題吧！”三月兔打了一個(gè)哈欠，打斷了他們的談話，“我都聽煩了。讓小姑娘講個(gè)故事吧！”

摘自《愛麗絲漫游奇境記》

美麗語錄

Use your smile to change the world.Don't let the world change your smile.

用你的笑容去改變這個(gè)世界，別讓這個(gè)世界改變了你的笑容。

Information Please　在別的世界里歌唱

◎Paul Villard

When I was quite young,my father had one of the first telephones in our neighborhood.I remember well the polished,old case fastened to the wall.The shiny receiver hung on the side of the box.I was too little to reach the telephone,but used to listen with fascination when my mother used to talk to it.Then I discovered that somewhere inside the wonderful device lived an amazing person her name was"Information Please"and there was nothing she did not know."Information Please"could supply anybody's number and the correct time.

My first personal experience with this genie-in-the-bottle came one day while my mother was visiting a neighbor.Amusing myself at the tool bench in the basement,I whacked my finger with a hammer.The pain was terrible,but there didn't seem to be any reason in crying because there was no one home to give sympathy.I walked around the house sucking my throbbing finger,finally arriving at the stairway.

The telephone!Quickly,I ran for the foot stool in the parlor and dragged it to the landing.Climbing up,I unhooked the receiver in the parlor and held it to my ear."Information Please,"I said into the mouthpiece just above my head.A click or two and a small clear voice spoke into my ear,"Information."

"I hurt my finger..."I wailed into the phone.The tears came readily enough now that I had an audience.

"Isn't your mother home?"came the question.

"Nobody's home but me,"I blubbered.

"Are you bleeding?"the voice asked.

"No,"I replied."I hit my finger with the hammer and it hurts."

"Can you open your icebox?"she asked.I said I could."Then chip off a little piece of ice and hold it to your finger."said the voice.

After that,I called"Information Please"for everything.I asked her for help with my geography and she told me where Philadelphia was.She helped me with my math.She told me my pet chipmunk that I had caught in the park just the day before,would eat fruit and nuts.Then,there was the time Petey,our pet canary died.I called"Information Please"and told her the sad story.She listened,then said the usual things grown-ups say to soothe a child.But I was unconsoled.I asked her,"Why is it that birds should sing so beautifully and bring joy to all families,only to end up as a heap of feathers on the bottom of a cage?"She must have sensed my deep concern,for she said quietly,"Paul,always remember that there are other worlds to sing in."Somehow I felt better.

Another day I was on the telephone."Information Please."

"Information."said the now familiar voice.

"How do you spell fix?"I asked.

All this took place in a small town in the Pacific Northwest.When I was nine years old,we moved across the country to Boston.I missed my friend very much."Information Please"belonged in that old wooden box back home and I somehow never thought of trying the tall,shiny new phone that sat on the table in the hall.As I grew into my teens,the memories of those childhood conversations never really left me.Often,in moments of doubt and perplexity,I would recall the serene sense of security I had then.I appreciated now how patient,understanding,and kind she was to have spent her time on a little boy.

A few years later,on my way west to college,my plane put down in Seattle.I had about half-an-hour or so between planes.I spent 15 minutes or so on the phone with my sister,who lived there now.

Then,without thinking what I was doing,I dialed my hometown operator and said,"Information please."

Miraculously,I heard the small,clear voice I knew so well.

"Information."

I hadn't planned this,but I heard myself saying,"Could you please tell me how to spell fix?"

There was a long pause.Then came the soft-spoken answer,"I guess your finger must have healed by now."

I laughed,"So it's really still you,"I said."I wonder if you have any idea how much you meant to me during that time."

"I wonder,"she said,"if you know how much your calls meant to me.I never had any children and I used to look forward to your calls."

I told her how often I had thought of her over the years and I asked if I could call her again when I came back to visit my sister.

"Please do,"she said."Just ask for Sally."

Three months later I was back in Seattle.A different voice answered,"Information."

I asked for Sally."Are you a friend?"she said.

"Yes,a very old friend."I answered.

"I'm sorry to have to tell you this,"she said."Sally had been working part time the last few years because she was sick.She died five weeks ago."

Before I could hang up she said,"Wait a minute.Is your name Paul?"

"Yes."

"Well,Sally left a message for you.She wrote it down in case you called.Let me read it to you."The note said,"Tell him I still say there are other worlds to sing in.He'll know what I mean."

I thanked her and hung up.I knew what Sally meant.

Never underestimate the impression you may make on others.Whose life have you touched today?

當(dāng)我年幼的時(shí)候，父親是我們社區(qū)里第一個(gè)為家里裝上電話的人。我還記得那個(gè)固定在墻上、擦得锃亮的舊式電話機(jī)，閃閃發(fā)亮的聽筒掛在電話盒旁邊。那時(shí)我太小，還夠不著電話，倒是常常在母親拿起它講話時(shí)，在一旁聽得入迷。后來，我發(fā)現(xiàn)就在這只神奇的盒子里，住著一個(gè)了不起的人，她的名字是“櫻芙美心·葡麗絲”，而且她簡(jiǎn)直無所不知。“櫻芙美心·葡麗絲”能答出任何人的電話號(hào)碼，報(bào)出正確的時(shí)間。

我第一次與這“瓶中妖”的接觸，是在媽媽去拜訪一位鄰居的那一天。我自己在地下室的工具凳上玩的時(shí)候，錘子砸到了我的手指頭。當(dāng)時(shí)痛極了，但看起來似乎沒任何理由哭泣，因?yàn)榧依锍抑鈩e無他人，沒有人會(huì)同情我。我吮吸著疼得鉆心的指頭，在房間里走來走去，最后來到了樓梯口。

電話！我快步?jīng)_向放在客廳的腳凳，把它拖到了樓梯口。爬上腳凳，摘下了聽筒，我將聽筒貼近我的耳邊。“櫻芙美心·葡麗絲，”我對(duì)準(zhǔn)頭上方的送話口說道。聽筒里傳來一兩聲嘟嘟聲后，我的耳畔響起了一個(gè)清脆的聲音。“櫻芙美心。”

“我弄傷了手指……”我朝著話筒哭泣道，眼淚肆無忌憚地洶涌而出，我終于有了一個(gè)觀眾。

“媽媽不在家嗎？”她問。

“沒人在家，只有我一個(gè)人！”我哭得更傷心了。

“流血了嗎？”那個(gè)聲音又說道。

“沒有，”我回答。“錘子砸到了我的手指頭，好疼啊！”

“你能打開冰箱嗎？”她問。我說可以。“那取出一小塊冰來，然后敷在手指頭上。”那個(gè)聲音又說。

在那之后，不管有什么事，我都給“櫻芙美心·葡麗絲”打電話。我問她地理，她就告訴我費(fèi)城在哪里。她幫我補(bǔ)習(xí)數(shù)學(xué)。她告訴我，前天我在公園捉住的那只寵物花栗鼠想吃水果或堅(jiān)果。后來，有一次我們的寵物金絲雀“皮蒂”死了。我又一次撥通了“櫻芙美心·葡麗絲”，告訴她這個(gè)傷心的消息。她靜靜地聽著，然后說了些大人常常安慰小孩子的話。但是，我并沒得到寬慰。我問她：“為什么鳥兒唱歌那么好聽，還把歡樂帶給所有的家庭，可是死的時(shí)候卻變成了蜷在籠底的一堆羽毛？”她一定感覺到了我深深的悲傷，因?yàn)樗p聲說道：“保羅，一定要記住，它們還可以在別的世界里歌唱！”不知為什么，我感覺好多了。

一天，我再次來到了電話旁。“櫻芙美心·葡麗絲。”

“櫻芙美心，”耳邊傳來了熟悉的聲音。

我問，“Fix怎么拼寫？”

這一切發(fā)生在太平洋西北部的一個(gè)小鎮(zhèn)上。當(dāng)我9歲的時(shí)候，我們?nèi)野徇w到了波士頓。我特別想念我的朋友。“櫻芙美心·葡麗絲”永遠(yuǎn)屬于老家的那個(gè)老式木盒子，不知為什么，我從沒有想過去試試放在客廳桌上那個(gè)高高的、閃亮的新電話。當(dāng)我到了十多歲的時(shí)候，那童年記憶的對(duì)話也從未從我的腦海中逝去。常常在我感到疑慮與困惑時(shí)，我會(huì)回想起那時(shí)擁有的那種寧靜的安全感。我感激她在那個(gè)小男孩身上付出的時(shí)間，感激她的耐心、理解和善良。

幾年后，在我奔赴西部去上大學(xué)的路上，我的飛機(jī)在西雅圖降落。我有半小時(shí)的轉(zhuǎn)機(jī)時(shí)間。我給住在那里的姐姐打了約15分鐘的電話。

然后，還沒有意識(shí)到自己在做什么，我就撥通了家鄉(xiāng)小鎮(zhèn)的接線員，說：“櫻芙美心·葡麗絲。”

奇跡般地，我又聽到了那清脆而溫柔的無比熟悉的聲音。

“櫻芙美心。”

我本來并沒打算這么做，但是我聽見自己說：“你能告訴我怎么拼寫fix嗎？”

一陣長(zhǎng)時(shí)間的沉寂。接下來是一個(gè)輕言細(xì)語的回答：“我猜你的小手指頭現(xiàn)在一定痊愈了。”

我笑了，“所以，還真的是你！”我說，“你知不知道，在那個(gè)時(shí)候，你對(duì)我有多么重要。”

“我想，”她說，“你是否知道你的電話對(duì)我意味著什么。我沒有孩子，所以常常期盼著你的電話。”

我告訴她，這些年我一直很想念她。我問她我再回來看姐姐時(shí)，是否還能打電話給她。

她欣然許諾：“當(dāng)然啦！找薩莉就行！”

三個(gè)月后，我再次回到西雅圖。接電話的是一個(gè)不同的聲音，“櫻芙美心。”

我說我要找薩莉。她問：“你是她的朋友嗎？”

“是的，很熟悉的老朋友。”我說。

“我很抱歉要告訴你，”她說，“薩莉病了好長(zhǎng)時(shí)間了，所以過去幾年來她一直做兼職。五個(gè)星期前她去世了。”

在我就要掛斷電話前，她說：“等一等，你是不是叫保羅？”

“是。”

“對(duì)了，薩莉給你留了一張便條，她怕你萬一打電話來。我讀給你聽。”便條上寫著，“告訴他，我依然會(huì)說，還可以在別的世界里歌唱。他知道我的意思。”

我謝過她之后，掛上了電話。我明白薩莉的意思。

永遠(yuǎn)不要低估你給別人留下的印象。今天你又走進(jìn)了誰的生活？

美麗語錄

If you be loved,be worthy of love.

如果有人愛你，你就該做個(gè)值得人愛的人。

The Pure Love in the Kids'Eyes　孩子眼中純凈的愛

◎John Wesley

A group of professional people posed this question to a group of 4 to 8 year-olds:"What does love mean?"The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined.See what you think.

"When my grandmother got arthritis,she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore.So my grandfather does it for her all the time,even when his hands got arthritis too.That's love."—Rebecca,age 8

"When someone loves you,the way they say your name is different.You know that your name is safe in their mouth."—Billy,age 4

"Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs."—Chris,age 6

"Love is when someone hurts you.And you get so mad but you don't yell at them because you know it would hurt their feelings."—Samantha,age 6

"Love is what makes you smile when you're tired."

—Terri,age 4

"Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him,to make sure the taste is OK."—Danny,age 7

"Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen."

—Bobby,age 5

"Love is hugging.Love is kissing.Love is saying no."

—Patty,age 8

"When you tell someone something bad about yourself and you're scared they won't love you anymore.But then you get surprised because not only do they still love you,they love you even more."—Matthew,age 7

"There are two kinds of love.Our love.God's love.But God makes both kinds of them."—Jenny,age 4

"Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt,then he wears it everyday."—Noelle,age 7

"Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well."—Tommy,age 6

"During my piano recital,I was on a stage and scared.I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling.He was the only one doing that.I wasn't scared anymore."—Cindy,age 8

"My mommy loves me more than anybody.You don't see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night."

—Clare,age 5

"Love is when mommy sees daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford."

—Chris,age 8

"Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day."—Mary Ann,age 4

"I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones."

—Lauren,age 4

"When you love somebody,your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you."—Karen,age 7

"You really shouldn't say"I love you'unless you mean it.But if you mean it,you should say it a lot.People forget."—Jessica,age 8

一群專業(yè)人士向一群4到8歲的孩子提出了這樣的問題：“什么是愛？”他們得到的答案廣泛而深刻，遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)超出了所有人的想象。看看這些答案，你想到了什么？

“我的祖母患關(guān)節(jié)炎的時(shí)候無法彎腰，不能涂腳趾甲。所以，祖父一直替她涂腳趾甲，盡管他也患有關(guān)節(jié)炎。這就是愛。”——麗貝卡，8歲

“當(dāng)別人愛上你的時(shí)候，他（她）們叫你名字的方式都會(huì)與眾不同。你知道他（她）們總是小心翼翼地呼喊著你的名字。”——比利，4歲

“愛就是外出吃飯時(shí)，你愿意不求回報(bào)地將大部分法國炸薯?xiàng)l贈(zèng)送給別人。”——克麗絲，6歲

“愛就是當(dāng)別人傷害你的時(shí)候，即使你很生氣，也不會(huì)沖著他們大吼大叫，因?yàn)槟阒肋@樣做會(huì)傷害他們的感情。”——薩曼莎，6歲

“愛是當(dāng)你疲憊時(shí)讓你開懷一笑的東西。”

——特里，4歲

“愛是當(dāng)媽媽為爸爸泡咖啡時(shí)，她會(huì)輕輕地嘬上一小口，保證她端到爸爸面前的是最好喝的咖啡。”

——丹尼，7歲

“愛是你在圣誕節(jié)的夜晚停下忙于拆卸禮物的雙手，轉(zhuǎn)而細(xì)心聆聽。”——鮑比，5歲

“愛是擁抱。愛是親吻。愛是說不。”

——帕蒂，8歲

“當(dāng)你把一些關(guān)于自己的不好的事情告訴別人時(shí)，你生怕他們不再愛你了。可是，你卻驚喜地發(fā)現(xiàn)他們不但愛你如故，而且愛得更深了。”——馬修，7歲

“愛分為兩種：人類的愛和上帝的愛。但是，這兩種愛都源自上帝。”——甄妮，4歲

“愛是在你告訴一個(gè)小伙子你喜歡他的襯衫后，接下來的每一天他都穿那件襯衫。”

——諾艾爾，7歲

“愛是彼此了解的老奶奶和老爺爺仍舊還能成為朋友。”

——湯米，6歲

“鋼琴獨(dú)奏會(huì)上，舞臺(tái)上的我害怕極了。我看到臺(tái)下所有人都在看我。這時(shí)，爸爸朝我招手微笑。只有他那樣做。這讓我不再害怕了。”——辛迪，8歲

“媽媽對(duì)我的愛勝過一切。除了她，沒人會(huì)在睡前親吻我的臉頰。”——卡萊爾，5歲

“愛是即使爸爸渾身汗臭味，媽媽也會(huì)覺得他比羅伯特·雷德福還要帥得多。”——克里斯，8歲

“愛是即使你將小狗獨(dú)自關(guān)在家中一整天，它也會(huì)親昵地舔舔你的臉頰。”——馬莉安，4歲

“我知道我的姐姐很愛我，因?yàn)樗阉械呐f衣服都給了我，然后給自己買新的。”——?jiǎng)趥悾?歲

“當(dāng)你愛上某人時(shí)，你的睫毛就會(huì)眨呀眨的，像小星星那樣。”——卡倫，7歲

“如果不是真心實(shí)意，請(qǐng)別輕易地說‘我愛你’。然而，如果你是真心實(shí)意，那就經(jīng)常說‘我愛你’吧，免得人們忘記了。”——杰西卡，8歲

美麗語錄

If you look for it,love actually is all around.

只要你用心尋找，你會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)愛無處不在。

The Importance of Conscience　我的好妹妹

◎Elisha M.Webster

I was faced with a decision.While delivering laundry into the appropriate bedrooms,I stumbled upon my thirteen-year-old sister's diary,a modern-day Pandora's Box,suffused with temptation.What was I to do?I had always been jealous of my little sister.Her charming smile,endearing personality and many talents threatened my place as leading lady.I competed with her tacitly and grew to resent her natural abilities.I felt it necessary to shatter her shadow with achievements of my own.As a result,we seldom spoke.I sought opportunities to criticize her and relished surpassing her achievements.Her diary lay at my feet,and I didn't think of the result of opening it.I considered not her privacy,the morality of my actions,nor her consequential pain.I merely savored the possibility of digging up enough dirt to soil my competitor's spotless record.I reasoned my iniquity as sisterly duty.It was my responsibility to keep a check on her activities.It would be wrong of me not to.

I tentatively plucked the book from the floor and opened it,fanning through the pages,searching for my name,convinced that I would discover scheming and slander.As I read,the blood ran from my face.It was worse than I suspected.I felt faint and slouched to the floor.There was neither conspiracy nor defamation.There was a succinct description of herself,her goals and her dreams followed by a short portrayal of the person who has inspired her most.I started to cry.

I was her hero.She admired me for my personality,my achievements and ironically,my integrity.She wanted to be like me.She had been watching me for years,quietly marveling over my choices and actions.I ceased reading,struck with the crime I had committed.I had expended so much energy into pushing her away that I had missed out on her.

I had wasted years resenting someone capable of magic—and now I had violated her trust.It was I who had lost something beautiful,and it was I who would never allow myself to do such a thing again.

Reading the earnest words my sister had written seemed to melt an icy barrier around my heart,and I longed to know her again.I was finally able to put aside the petty insecurity that kept me from her.On that fateful afternoon,as I put aside the laundry and rose to my feet,I decided to go to her—this time to experience instead of to judge,to embrace instead of to fight.After all,she was my sister.

我正面臨著一個(gè)抉擇。當(dāng)我把洗好的衣服分別放進(jìn)相應(yīng)的臥室時(shí)，我不經(jīng)意地看到了我那13歲妹妹的日記本，那就像一個(gè)現(xiàn)代的潘多拉盒子，深深地吸引著我。我該怎么做？我一直都嫉妒我的小妹妹。我嫉妒她迷人的微笑、可愛的個(gè)性，還有她的多才多藝，因?yàn)檫@些都挑戰(zhàn)著我的老大地位。我私底下偷偷地和她較勁，對(duì)她才能的憎恨更是與日俱增。我迫不及待地想把她的影子從我的個(gè)人成就上抹去。結(jié)果，我們平時(shí)很少說話。我尋找任何可以批評(píng)她的機(jī)會(huì)，并且急切地想要?jiǎng)龠^她。現(xiàn)在，她的日記就躺在我腳邊，我根本沒有考慮過打開它的后果。我在意的不是她的隱私，不是我的行為道德，也不是她可能會(huì)受到的傷害。我僅僅是想從日記中發(fā)現(xiàn)一些罪證，來打破我的競(jìng)爭(zhēng)者始終優(yōu)秀的可能性。我把自己的壞念頭歸咎為姐姐的職責(zé)：檢查她的行為舉止是我的責(zé)任。如果我沒有盡義務(wù)，這才是我的錯(cuò)誤。

我猶豫不決地?fù)芘藥状蔚匕迳系娜沼洷荆罱K打開了它。我迅速翻著書頁，尋找著我的名字，確信一定能找到什么相應(yīng)的證據(jù)。可是，當(dāng)我發(fā)現(xiàn)自己的名字時(shí)，臉一下子漲得通紅。這遠(yuǎn)比我想象得糟糕多了。我的腦袋一陣眩暈，癱坐在了地板上。既沒有陰謀也沒有誹謗，有的只是她對(duì)自己的簡(jiǎn)單陳述、她的人生目標(biāo)和夢(mèng)想，其中還有一個(gè)對(duì)她影響深遠(yuǎn)的人。我哭了起來。

我就是她心目中的英雄。她欽佩我的個(gè)性、我的成就，更加諷刺的是，還有我的正直。她想成為像我這樣的人。原來，這些年來她一直默默地看著我，觀察著我的選擇和行為。我不再讀了，結(jié)束了我的罪行。我花了太多的精力把她從身邊推開，我已經(jīng)失去她了。

這么多年來，我一直在浪費(fèi)時(shí)間憎恨一個(gè)有魔力的人——并且現(xiàn)在還辜負(fù)了她對(duì)我的信任。是我自己失去了這么美好的東西，也是我決心再也不允許自己犯這樣的錯(cuò)誤。

看了妹妹寫在日記里真誠的語言后，裹在我心上的冰已經(jīng)慢慢融化，我要重新去了解她。最終，我拋棄了那種不信任，正是它造成了我們之間的隔閡。在那個(gè)意義深遠(yuǎn)的下午，我把洗好的衣服放在一邊，站起來準(zhǔn)備去找她——這一次是去感受而不是責(zé)難，去擁抱而不是爭(zhēng)執(zhí)。無論如何，她是我的妹妹。

美麗語錄

Don't compare your life to others.You have no idea what their journey is all about.

不用拿你的人生和別人作比較，因?yàn)槟愀静恢绖e人人生的全部。

The Little Girl Who Dared to Wish　許愿的小女孩

◎Alan D.Shultz

As Amy Hagadorn rounded the corner across the hall from her classroom,she collided with a tall boy from the fifth grade running in the opposite direction.

"Watch it,squirt."The boy yelled as he dodged around the little third-grader.Then,with a smirk on his face,the boy took hold of his right leg and mimicked the way Amy limped when she walked.

Amy closed her eyes.Ignore him,she told herself as she headed for her classroom.

But at the end of the day,Amy was still thinking about the tall boy's mean teasing.It wasn't as if her were the only one.It seemed that ever since Amy started the third grade,someone teased her every single day.Kids teased her about her speech or her limping.Amy was tired of it.Sometimes,even in a classroom full of other students,the teasing made her feel all alone.

Back home at the dinner table that evening,Amy was quiet.Her mother knew that things were not going well at school.That's why Patti Hagadorn was happy to have some exciting news to share with her daughter.

"There's a Christmas wish contest on the radio station,"Amy's mom announced."Write a letter to Santa,and you might win a prize.I think someone at this table with blonde curly hair should enter."

Amy giggled.The contest sounded like fun.She started thinking about what she wanted most for Christmas.

A smile took hold of Amy when the idea first came to her.Out came pencil and paper,and Amy went to work on her letter."Dear Santa Claus,"she began.

While Amy worked away at her best printing,the rest of the family tried to guess what she might ask from Santa.Amy's sister,Jamie,and Amy's mom both thought a three-foot Barbie doll would top Amy's wish list.Amy's dad guessed a picture book.But Amy wasn't ready to reveal her secret Christmas wish just then.Here is Amy's letter to Santa,just as she wrote it that night:

Dear Santa Claus,

My name is Amy.I am nine years old.I have a problem at school.Can you help me Santa?Kids laugh at me because of the way I walk and run and talk.I have cerebral palsy.I just want one day where no one laughs at me or makes fun of me.

Love,Amy

At radio station WJLT in Fort Wayne,Indiana,letter poured in for the Christmas wish contest.The workers had fun reading about all the different presents that boys and girls from across the city wanted for Christmas.

When Amy's letter arrived at the radio station,manager Lee Tobin read it carefully.He knew cerebral palsy was a muscle disorder that might confuse the schoolmates of Amy's who didn't understand her disability.He thought it would be good for the people in Fort Wayne to hear about this special third-grader and her unusual wish.Mr.Tobin called up the local newspaper.

The next day,a picture of Amy and her letter to Santa made the front page of the News Sentinel.The story spread quickly.All across the country,newspapers and radio and television stations reported the story of the little girl in Fort Wayne,Indiana,who asked for such a simple yet remarkable Christmas gift—just one day without teasing.

Suddenly the postman was a regular at the Hagadorn house.Envelopes of all sizes addressed to Amy arrived daily from children and adults all across the nation.They came filled with holiday greetings and words of encouragement.

During that unforgettable Christmas season,over two thousand people from all over the world sent Amy letters of friendship and support.

Amy and her family read every single one.Some of the writers had disabilities;some had been teased as children.Each writer had a special message for Amy.Through the cards and letters from strangers,Amy glimpsed a world full of people who truly cared about each other.

She realized that no amount or form of teasing could ever make her feel lonely again.

Many people thanked Amy for being brave enough to speak up.Others encouraged her to ignore teasing and to carry her head high.Lynn,a sixth-grader from Texas,sent this message:

"I would like to be your friend,"she wrote,"and if you want to visit me,we could have fun.No one would make fun of us,cause if they do,we will not even hear them."

Amy did get her wish of a special day without teasing at South Wayne Elementary School.Additionally,everyone at school got another bonus.Teachers and students talked together about how bad teasing can make others feel.

That year the Fort Wayne mayor officially proclaimed December 21 as Amy Jo Hagadorn Day throughout the city.The mayor explained that by daring to make such a simple wish,Amy taught a universal lesson.

"Everyone,"said the mayor,"wants and deserves to be treated with respect,dignity and warmth."

在艾米繞過她教室對(duì)面的走廊的拐角時(shí)，她迎面撞到了一個(gè)五年級(jí)的高個(gè)男孩。

“看路，小個(gè)子。”那男孩在避開這個(gè)三年級(jí)的學(xué)生時(shí)大叫道，然后，臉上帶著厭惡的笑容，把手按在右腿上，模仿著艾米走路一瘸一拐的樣子。

艾米閉上了眼睛。“不理會(huì)他。”她在返回教室時(shí)對(duì)自己說。

但是在那天結(jié)束時(shí)，艾米仍然想著那個(gè)高個(gè)子男孩的嘲笑。他并不是唯一一個(gè)做出這種事的人。好像自從艾米上三年級(jí)以后，每天都有人嘲笑她。孩子們嘲笑她的講話或是她的跛行。艾米受夠了這些。有時(shí)，即使在坐滿了學(xué)生的教室里，別人的嘲笑也會(huì)使她感到孤單無助。

那晚，回到家里，艾米坐在餐桌旁沉默不語。她的母親知道肯定是在學(xué)校里遇到不順心的事了。所以，派蒂?zèng)Q定告訴她女兒一些激動(dòng)人心的消息。

“電臺(tái)里有一個(gè)圣誕節(jié)愿望競(jìng)賽的節(jié)目，”艾米的母親告訴她。“給圣誕老人寫封信，或許你就能得到獎(jiǎng)品。我想，坐在餐桌旁的某個(gè)金發(fā)卷毛的人應(yīng)該參加。”

艾米咯咯地笑了。這個(gè)競(jìng)賽聽起來很有趣。她開始思考她最想要的圣誕節(jié)禮物。

當(dāng)艾米第一次想起這個(gè)主意時(shí)，她的臉上掛滿了微笑。她拿出鉛筆和紙，然后開始寫信。“親愛的圣誕老人，”她寫下開頭。

當(dāng)艾米正起勁地寫作文時(shí)，家里的其他人試圖猜測(cè)她可能向圣誕老人要求什么。艾米的姐姐，杰米，和艾米的媽媽都認(rèn)為3英尺大的芭比娃娃是艾米最想要的東西。艾米的爸爸認(rèn)為是一本圖畫書。但是艾米當(dāng)時(shí)還不想告訴他們她的秘密圣誕節(jié)愿望。以下就是艾米寫給圣誕老人的信，就是她在那晚寫的：

親愛的圣誕老人：

我的名字叫艾米。我9歲了。我在學(xué)校有一個(gè)麻煩。你能幫我嗎，圣誕老人？孩子們嘲笑我走路、跑步和講話的方式。我患有腦癱。我只想擁有一天，一個(gè)沒人笑話我、取笑我的一天。

愛你的，艾米

在印地安那州的韋恩堡WJLT廣播電臺(tái)，參加圣誕節(jié)愿望競(jìng)賽的信件蜂擁而至。工作人員開心地讀著來自全市的男孩女孩寄來的各種各樣的圣誕節(jié)禮物信件。

當(dāng)艾米的信到達(dá)電臺(tái)時(shí)，經(jīng)理李·托賓仔細(xì)地閱讀了內(nèi)容。他知道腦癱是一種肌肉紊亂的病癥，所以可能艾米的同學(xué)從外表看不出她有殘疾。他認(rèn)為讓韋恩堡的市民聽到這位特別的三年級(jí)的故事以及她非一般的愿望是件好事。托賓先生給當(dāng)?shù)貓?bào)紙打了電話。

第二天，艾米的照片和她寫給圣誕老人的信登上了《新聞前哨》的首頁。故事迅速傳開了。全國的報(bào)紙、廣播和電視臺(tái)都報(bào)道了這個(gè)印地安那州韋恩堡的小女孩的故事，她要求的只是這樣一個(gè)簡(jiǎn)單卻值得注意的圣誕節(jié)禮物——只是沒有取笑的一天。

突然，郵差成了艾米家的常客。每天都有各種型號(hào)的信件寄給艾米，來自于全國的小孩和大人們。信里充滿了節(jié)日的問候和鼓勵(lì)的話語。

在那個(gè)難以忘懷的圣誕節(jié)期間，世界范圍內(nèi)超過兩千人寄給艾米信件以表達(dá)友情和支持。艾米和她的家人閱讀了每一封信。有一些來信者也身患?xì)埣玻幸恍┤嗽谛r(shí)候也被嘲笑過。每位來信者都向艾米表達(dá)了一種特別的信息。通過來自陌生人的卡片和信件，艾米瞥見了一個(gè)充滿了真正的互相關(guān)懷的人類社會(huì)。她認(rèn)識(shí)到，再多或者再惡毒的嘲笑都不能再使她感到孤單了。

很多人都被艾米勇敢地說出心聲而感動(dòng)。其他人則鼓勵(lì)她不去理睬嘲笑，勇敢面對(duì)。林恩，一位來自德克薩斯州的六年級(jí)生，寄給了她一封信：

“我希望和你交個(gè)朋友，”她寫道，“如果你想來看望我，我們可以一起玩。沒人會(huì)取笑我們，因?yàn)椋绻麄內(nèi)⌒Γ覀兟牰疾粫?huì)聽到。”

艾米的確實(shí)現(xiàn)了她的愿望，在南韋恩堡小學(xué)度過了沒有取笑的一天。還有，學(xué)校的每個(gè)人都學(xué)到了額外的東西。教師和學(xué)生們一起討論取笑他人會(huì)給人帶來多么不好的感覺。

那一年，韋恩堡市長(zhǎng)正式宣布12月21號(hào)作為全市的艾米日。市長(zhǎng)解釋說，因?yàn)榘赘矣谧龀鲞@樣一個(gè)簡(jiǎn)單的許愿，她讓大家都學(xué)到了特別的一課。

“所有人，”市長(zhǎng)說道，“都希望得到并且應(yīng)該得到尊重、尊嚴(yán)和友善。”

美麗語錄

There are so many people out there who will tell you that you can't.What you've got to do is turn around and say"Watch me."

總會(huì)有許多人對(duì)你指手畫腳，告訴你：你做不到。你所要做的就是轉(zhuǎn)過頭去對(duì)他們說：看我的！