双语有声阅读：带来欢乐的鹬（打印版）

A Sandpiper to Bring You Joy

She was six years old when I first met her on the beach near where I live. I drive to this beach, a distance of three or four miles, whenever the world begins to close in on me.

She was building a sand castle or some thing and looked up, her eyes as blue as the sea. “Hello, ”she said. I answered with a nod, not really in the mood to bother with a small child. “I’ m building, ”she said. “I see that. What is it？”I asked, not caring. “Oh, I don’t know. I just like the feel of the sand. ”That sounds good, I thought, and slipped off my shoes. A sandpiper glided by. “That’s a joy, ”the child said. “It’s what？”“It’s a joy. My mama says sandpipers come to bring us joy. ”The bird went glissading down the beach. “Good-bye, joy, ”I muttered to myself, “hello, pain,”and turned to walk on. I was depressed；my life seemed completely out of balance. “What’s your name？”she wouldn’t give up. “Ruth, ”I answered. “I’m Ruth Peterson. ”“Mine’s Wendy. And I‘m six. ”“Hi, Wendy. ”She giggled. “You’re funny, ”she said. In spite of my gloom I laughed too and walked on. Her musical giggle followed me. “Come again, Mrs. P, ”she called. “We’ll have another happy day. ”

The days and weeks that followed belonged to others：a group of unruly Boy Scouts3), PTA4) meetings, an ailing mother.

The sun was shining one morning as I took my hands out of the dishwasher. “I need a sandpiper, ”I said to myself, gathering up my coat. The never-changing balm of the seashore awaited me. The breeze was chilly, but I strode along, trying to recapture the serenity I needed. I had forgotten the child and was startled when she appeared. “Hello, Mrs. P, ”she said. “Do you want to play？”“What did you have in mind？”I asked, with a twinge of annoyance. “I don’ t know. You say. ”“How about charades5)？”I asked sarcastically

The tinkling laughter burst forth again. “I don’t know what that is. ”“Then let’s just walk. ”Looking at her, I noticed the delicate fairness of her face.

“Where do you live？”I asked. “Over there. ”She pointed toward a row of summer cottages. Strange, I thought, in winter. “Where do you go to school？”“I don’ t go to school. Mommy says we’re on vacation. ”She chattered little-girl talk as we strolled up the beach, but my mind was on other things. When I left for home, Windy said it had been a happy day. Feeling surprisingly better, I smiled at her and agreed.

带来欢乐的鹬

我在离我住处不远的沙滩上第一次碰见她时, 她才６岁。每当这个世界让我感到苦闷压抑时, 我就开上三四英里车来到这片沙滩。

她在用沙子盖城堡或是别的什么。她抬起头来, 眼睛跟大海一样蓝。“你好, ”她说。我点头回答, 说实在的, 我没有心思管一个小孩子。“我在盖东西, ”她说。“我看见了。那是什么？”我漫不经心地问道。“啊, 我不知道。我只是喜欢沙子的感觉。”那听上去不错, 我自忖, 然后我把鞋子脱掉。这时一只鹬滑翔而过。“那是一种欢乐, ”那孩子说道。“那是什么？”“那是一种欢乐。我妈妈说鹬给我们带来欢乐。”那鸟沿着海滩滑降。“再见吧, 欢乐, ”我喃喃自语, “你好, 痛苦。”说完就转身继续往前走去。我情绪低落；我的生活彻底失去了平衡。“你叫什么名字？”那女孩就是不放过我。“鲁思, ”我回答说。“鲁思•彼得森。”“我叫温迪, ６岁。”“你好, 温迪。”她咯咯地笑了。“你挺逗乐, ”她说。尽管我情绪忧郁, 我也笑了。

随后, 我走开了。她那音乐般的笑声从背后传来。“彼得森太太, 下次再来, ”她叫道。“我们还会有快乐的一天。”

以后的几天, 甚至几周是属于别人的：一群闹哄哄的童子军、家长教师联谊会的会议, 还有我那有病的妈妈。

一天早上我把手从洗碗机里拿出来时, 阳光明媚。“我需要一只鹬, ”我自语着拿起上衣。等待我的是来自漫步海边沙滩时持久不变的慰藉。微风略有寒意, 可我阔步前进, 试图重新获得我需要的宁静。我已经把那女孩忘了, 她出现时吓我一跳。“你好, 彼得森太太, ”她说道。“你想玩吗？”“你想玩什么？”我问道, 口气里显露出厌烦。“我不知道。你说吧。”“玩字谜游戏怎样？”我讥讽地问道。她又发出了那清脆的笑声。

“我不知道那是什么。”“那就让我们散步吧。”我看着她, 注意到她纤弱的白皙脸色。“你住在哪儿？”我问道。“那边。”她手指着一排避暑小屋。奇怪, 我心想, 怎么会在冬天住在避暑的小屋里。“你在哪儿上学？”“我不上学。妈妈说我们在度假。”我们一边在沙滩上往前走, 她一边喋喋不休地说着女孩子气的话, 但是我却在想别的事。我要回家时, 温迪说那一天过得很愉快。我感觉出奇地好, 朝她笑了笑表示同意。

双语有声阅读：带来欢乐的鹬（在线收听）