美国语文第四册 第37期:草莓

 　　Little Pearl Honeydew, six years old, From her bright ear parted the curls of gold; 小珍珠蜜瓜，六岁大，金色的卷发从她漂亮的耳朵边分开；

　　And laid her head on the strawberry bed, To hear what the red-cheeked berries said. 将她的头放在草莓藤上，听听红脸蛋的莓子在说什么。

　　Their cheeks were blushing, their breath was sweet, She could almost hear their little hearts beat; 他们的脸颊红扑扑，他们的气息甜丝丝，她几乎能听到他们小小心脏跳动的声音；

　　And the tiniest, lisping, whispering sound That ever you heard, came up from the ground. 最微小的、含糊不清的低语声你曾听到过的，来自土地下面。

　　"Little friends," she said, "I wish I knew How it is you thrive on sun and dew!" “小朋友们，”她说道，“我希望知道你们在阳光和雨露下如何茁壮成长！”

　　And this is the story the berries told To little Pearl Honeydew, six years old. 这就是莓子们讲给六岁的小珍珠蜜瓜的故事。

　　You wish you knew? And so do we. 你希望能知道？我们也想。

　　But we can't tell you, unless it be That the same Kind Power that cares for you Takes care of poor little berries, too. 但我们不能告诉你，除非是照料你的仁慈力量也能够照顾可怜的小莓子们。

　　Tucked up snugly¹, and nestled below Our coverlid of wind-woven snow, 紧紧地蜷起来，依偎在风雪织成的被子下面，

　　We peep and listen, all winter long, For the first spring day and the bluebird's song. 整个冬天，我们从里面看着听着，等待第一个春日的到来，聆听蓝色知更鸟的歌唱。

　　When the swallows fly home to the old brown shed, 当燕子飞回位于棕色小屋的家时，

　　And the robins² build on the bough³ overhead, Then out from the mold, from the darkness and cold, Blossom and runner and leaf unfold. 知更鸟在头顶的树枝上筑巢，从上好的松软土壤中，从黑暗、寒冷处，草莓的花朵、枝蔓和叶子竞相出现。

　　Good children, then, if they come near, 好孩子，如果他们来到跟前，

　　And hearken a good long while, may hear A wonderful tramping of little feet,—So fast we grow in the summer heat. 待那么一会儿，就能够听到美妙的脚步声,我们在夏季的高温里长得飞快。

　　Our clocks are the flowers; and they count the hours Till we can mellow⁴ in suns and showers, 我们的钟表是花；他们计算着小时,直到我们在阳光和雨露下变得成熟，

　　With warmth of the west wind and heat of the south, A ripe red berry for a ripe red month. 再加上和煦的西风和温暖的南风，成熟的红草莓带来的时机成熟的红月份。

　　Apple blooms whiten, and peach blooms fall, 苹果花变白，桃花谢了，

　　And roses are gay by the garden wall, Ere the daisy's dial gives the sign That we may invite little Pearl to dine. 玫瑰花在花园墙边怒放，在雏菊的花面给出时间标志之前，我们要邀请小珍珠来赴晚宴。

　　The days are longest, the month is June, The year is nearing its golden noon, 日最长，是六月，一年接近黄金时间段，

　　The weather is fine, and our feast is spread With a green cloth and berries red. 天气晴好，我们的盛宴装饰着绿色的桌布和红红的草莓。

　　Just take us betwixt your finger and thumb,And quick, oh, quick! for, see! there come Tom on all fours, 就将我们夹在拇指和食指之间，迅速地，噢，迅速！你看，四个人中汤姆，

　　and Martin the man,And Margaret, picking as fast as they can. 马丁，玛格丽特都在尽可能快地摘草莓。

　　Oh, dear! if you only knew how it shocks Nice berries like us to be sold by the box,And eaten by strangers, 噢，天哪！要是你知道像我们这么好的草莓会被放在盒子里出售，被陌生人享用，

　　and paid for with pelf⁵, You would surely take pity, and eat us yourself! 用金钱来换取，你肯定会表示同情，自己吃了自己！

　　And this is the story the small lips told To dear Pearl Honeydew, six years old, 这是小嘴唇们讲给可爱的小珍珠蜜瓜的故事，

　　When she laid her head on the strawberry bed To hear what the red-cheeked berries said. 她把头紧贴在草莓藤上时，想听听红脸蛋的草莓在说些什么。

1 snugly   

adv.紧贴地；贴身地；暖和舒适地；安适地

参考例句：

• Jamie was snugly wrapped in a white woolen scarf. 杰米围着一条白色羊毛围巾舒适而暖和。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The farmyard was snugly sheltered with buildings on three sides. 这个农家院三面都有楼房，遮得很严实。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 robins   

n.知更鸟，鸫( robin的名词复数 )；（签名者不分先后，以避免受责的）圆形签名抗议书（或请愿书）

参考例句：

• The robins occupied their former nest. 那些知更鸟占了它们的老窝。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Benjamin Robins then entered the fray with articles and a book. 而后，Benjamin Robins以他的几篇专论和一本书参加争论。 来自辞典例句

3 bough   

n.大树枝，主枝

参考例句：

• I rested my fishing rod against a pine bough.我把钓鱼竿靠在一棵松树的大树枝上。
• Every bough was swinging in the wind.每条树枝都在风里摇摆。

4 mellow   

adj.柔和的；熟透的；v.变柔和；(使)成熟

参考例句：

• These apples are mellow at this time of year.每年这时节，苹果就熟透了。
• The colours become mellow as the sun went down.当太阳落山时，色彩变得柔和了。

5 pelf   

n.金钱；财物（轻蔑语）

参考例句：

• Let him disenslave himself from the pelf of the world.让他从金钱束缚下解放自己。
• Pelf makes friends,adversity tries them.富贵交友易, 患难显真情。