1. Somewhere in a garden of this earth, which the dear Lord has planted with many fl owers of gladness, grew a fresh, bright little daisy. The fi rst this little daisy knew, she found herself growing in green pastures and beside the still waters where the Heavenly Shepherd was leading his sheep. And very beautiful did life look to her, as her bright little eyes, with their crimson lashes, opened and looked down into the deep crystal waters of the brook below, where the sunshine made every hour more sparkles, more rings of light, and more br illian t glances and changes of color, than all the j ewe lers in the world could imitate.

2. She knew in tima tely all the yellow-birds, and meadowlarks, and bobolinks, and black-birds, that sang, p ipe d, whistled, or chattered among the bushes and trees in the pastures, and she was a prime favorite with them all. The fi sh that darted to and fro in the waters seemed like so many living gems, and their silent motions, as they glided hither and thither, were full of beauty, and told as plainly of happiness as if they could speak. Multitudes of beautiful fl owers grew up in the water, or on the moist edges of the brook.

3. There were green fresh arrow-heads, which in their time gave forth their white blossoms with a little gold ball in the center of each, and there were the pickerel-weed, with its thick, sharp, green leaf, and its sturdy spike of blue blossoms, and the tall meadow-grass, with its graceful green tassels hanging down and making wavy reflections in the water; and there was the silver-weed, whose leaves as they dipped in the brook seemed to be of molten silver, and whose tall heads of fringy white blossoms sent forth a grateful perfume in the air; and there, too, were the pink and white azaleas, full of sweetness and beauty, and close along in the green mosses of the banks grew blue and white violets, and blood-root, with its silvery stars of blossom, and the purple hepatica, with its quaint, hairy leaves, and the slender wind-fl ower on its thread-like stem, and the crowfoot, with its dark bronze leaf and its half-shut fl ower, looking like the outside of a pink sea-shell.

4. In fact, there is scarcely any saying how many beautiful blooming things grew and fl ourished in that green pasture where dear little Daisy was so happy as fi rst to open her bright eyes. They did not all blossom at once, but had their graceful changes; but there was always a pleasant flutter of expectation among them,—either a sending forth of leaves, or a making of buds, or a bursting out into blossoms; and when the blossoms passed away, there was a thoughtful, careful maturing of seeds, all packed away so snugly in their little coffers and caskets of seed-pods, which were of every quaint and dainty shape that ever could be fancied for a lady’s jewel-box.

5. Overhead there grew a wide-spreading apple-tree, which in the month of June became a gigantic bouquet, holding up to the sun a million silvery opening fl owers, and a million pink-tipped buds; and the little winds would come to play in its branches, and take the pink shells of the blossoms for their tiny air-boats, in which they would go floating round among the fl owers, or sail on voyages of discovery down the stream; and when the time of its blossom was gone, the bountiful tree from year to year had matured fruits of golden ripeness which cheered the hearts of men.

6. Little Daisy’s life was only one varied delight from day to day. She had a hundred playmates among the lightwinged winds, that came to her every hour to tell her what was going on all over the green pasture, and to bring her sweet perfumed messages from the violets and anemones of even the more distant regions.

7. There was not a ring of sunlight that danced in the golden network at the bottom of the brook that did not bring a thrill of gladness to her heart; not a tiny fi sh glided in his crystal paths, or played and frolicked under the water-lily shadows, that was not a well-known friend of hers, and whose pleasures she did not share. At night she held conferences with the dewdrops that stepped about among the flowers in their bright pearl slippers, and washed their leaves and faces before they went to rest. Nice little nurses and dressing-maids these dews! and they kept tender guard all night over the fl owers, watching and blinking wakefully to see that all was safe; but when the sun arose, each of them spread a pair of little rainbow wings, and was gone.

8. To be sure, there were some reverses in her lot. Sometimes a great surly, ill-looking cloud would appear in the sky, like a cross schoolmaster, and sweep up all the sunbeams, and call in a gruff voice to the little winds, her play-fellows, to come away from their nonsense; and then he would send a great strong wind down on them, all with a frightful noise and roar, and sweep all the little fl owers fl at to the earth; and there would be a great rush and pattering of rain drops, and bellowing of thunders, and sharp forked lightnings would quiver through the air as if the green pastures certainly were to be torn to pieces; but in about half an hour it would be all over,—the sunbeams would all dance out from their hiding-places, just as good as if nothing had happened, and the little winds would come laughing back, and each little flower would lift itself up, and the winds would help them to shake off the wet and plume themselves as jauntily as if nothing had gone amiss.

9. Daisy had the greatest pride and joy in her own pink blossoms, of which there seemed to be an inexhaustible store; for, as fast as one dropped its leaves, another was ready to open its eyes, and there were buds of every size, waiting still to come on, even down to little green cushions of buds that lay hidden away in the middle of the leaves down close to the root. “How favored I am!” said Daisy, “I never stop blossoming. The anemones and the liverwort and the blood-root have their time, but then they stop and have only leaves, while I go on blooming perpetually; how nice it is to be made as I am!”

10. “But you must remember,” said a great rough Burdock to her,—“you must remember that your winter must come at last, when all this fine blossoming will have to be done with.”

“What do you mean?” said Daisy, in a tone of pride, eying her rough neighbor with a glance of disgust. “You are a rough, ugly old thing, and that’s why you are cross. Pretty people like me can afford to be goodnatured.”

11. “Ah, well,” said Dame Burdock, “you’ll see. It’s a pretty thing if a young chit just out from seed this year should be impertinent to me, who have seen twenty winters, —yes, and been through them well, too!”

“Tell me, Bobolink,” said Daisy, “is there any truth in what this horrid Burdock has been saying? What does she mean by winter?”

12. “I don’t know,—not I,” said Bobolink, as he turned a dozen somersets in the air, and then perched himself airily on a thistle-head, singing,—

“I don’t know, and I don’t care;

It’s mighty pleasant to fl y up there,

And it’s mighty pleasant to light down here,

And all I know is chip, chip, cheer.”

13. “Say, Humming-bird, do you know anything about winter?”

“Winter! I never saw one,” said Humming-bird; “we have wings, and follow summer round the world, and where she is, there go we.”

“Meadow-Lark, Meadow-Lark, have you ever heard of winter?” said Daisy.

14. Meadow-Lark was sure he never remembered one. “What is winter?” he said, looking confused.

“Butterfl y, Butterfl y,” said Daisy, “come, tell me, will there be winter, and what is winter?”

But the Butterfl y laughed, and danced up and down, and said, “What is Daisy talking about? I never heard of winter! Winter? ha! ha! What is it?”

15. “Then it’s only one of Burdock’s spiteful sayings,” said Daisy. “Just because she isn’t pretty, she wants to spoil my pleasure, too. Say, dear lovely tree that shades me so sweetly, is there such a thing as winter?”

And the tree said, with a sigh through its leaves, “Yes, daughter, there will be winter; but fear not, for the Good Shepherd makes both summer and winter, and each is good in its time. Enjoy the summer, and fear not.”

( HARRIET B. STOWE )

中文阅读

1. 在地球的某个地方有个花园，亲爱的主在那里种下了很多欢乐之花。就在这所花园里，长出一棵清新、活泼的小雏菊。小雏菊懵懵懂懂，不过她知道，自己长在翠绿的草地上、静静的溪水旁，天堂的牧羊人在这里引领着他的羔羊。在她眼里，人生是美丽的。她长着深红色的睫毛、明亮的小眼睛。睁开眼俯视小溪深邃而璀璨的溪水，只觉得阳光带来了越来越多的活力、越来越多的光环、越来越绚丽的光芒、越来越变幻多端的光彩，世间任何珠宝都无法与之匹敌。

2. 她跟所有那些黄鸟儿、草地鹨、食米鸟儿和黑鸟儿都很熟悉，跟所有那些在草地林间啼唱的、尖叫的、啭鸣的和啁啾的都很亲密。而她也为它们所喜爱。水里来回穿梭的鱼儿就像无数活生生的珠宝，它们四处游弋，安静的姿态异常美丽，似乎在告诉人们它们快乐。小溪里、湿润的溪畔开着许许多多美丽的花儿。

3. 花园里，几株绿色的新鲜兹菇在属于自己的节令绽放出白色的花朵，每朵花儿的花心都有一颗小小的金球；梭鱼草长着粗厚的、尖利的绿叶，开着强壮的、尖状的蓝花；高高的甜茅垂下优雅的绿色流苏，在潺潺的溪水中投下随波起伏的倒影；鹤金梅的叶子浸入水中，就像融化了的白银，穗状白花高高的顶上散发出宜人的芳香；还有粉的、白的杜鹃花，甜香扑鼻，赏心悦目；沿着溪畔的绿色苔藓，长着蓝的、白的紫罗兰和血根草，它们开着宛若灿星银色花儿；还有紫色的獐耳细辛，毛茸茸的叶子十分精致，丝线般的茎上开着纤弱的风之花；毛茛的叶片呈暗古铜色，花儿半开半合，犹如粉色海贝的壳。

4. 这片草地上究竟孕育了多少美丽的花草树木？实在很难一一赘述。小雏菊在这片草地上刚刚睁开明亮的眼睛时，开心而雀跃。这些花儿不会一下子全部绽放，而是优雅地变化着。不过，在它们中间，总会有一种令人愉悦的躁动——或长出一簇新叶，或发出一丛嫩芽，或绽放几朵鲜花；花儿凋谢后，种子就慢慢地、小心翼翼地发育。它们那小小的种荚或花穗精巧雅致，完全可以跟女士的珠宝盒媲美。

5. 雏菊的头顶上方有一颗蓬勃的苹果树，到了六月就变成一株庞大的花束，成百万盛开的小白花儿和成百万尖角透着粉色的嫩芽迎向太阳。微风在树梢嬉戏，把花朵的粉色外壳当做它们小小的飞艇，它们乘坐小飞艇或在花儿中间飞翔，或在树下的小溪里航行，开始它们的探索之旅。年复一年，等到花期过去，慷慨的大树都会孕育出金色的果实，让人们欢欣雀跃。

6. 日复一日，小雏菊的生活充满了各种欢乐。在展翅飞翔的微风儿中间，她有一百个玩伴儿，每一小时都有玩伴儿来找她，把这片草地各处发生的趣事讲给她听，甚至从更远的紫罗兰和银莲花那里给她捎来甜香扑鼻的口信。

7. 没有哪一束在小溪水底的金色网中跳舞的阳光不给她带去一阵狂喜；没有哪一条在水晶宫游弋或在睡莲阴影里玩闹嬉戏的小鱼不是她熟稔的朋友，没有哪一个不让她分享它们的快乐。夜里，她就跟露珠们聊天，露珠们穿着闪亮的珍珠拖鞋在花儿中间散步，在它们睡去之前替它们洗去叶子和脸上的灰尘。这些露珠真是善良的小护士、和蔼的装扮女仆！它们整夜都温柔地守护着那些花儿，眨着眼睛四处巡视，确保一切都安全无虞；然而，等到太阳升起，它们就展开小小的彩虹翅膀飞走了。

8. 然而，她的生活发生了逆转。有时候，天空会突然出现一大片脸色阴沉、面目可憎的乌云，就像性情乖戾的校长，将所有的阳光一扫而光，粗鲁地召集那些小小的微风们——她的玩伴儿，叫它们废话少说；然后，它就掀起一阵猛烈的狂风，怒吼着、咆哮着横扫过去，所有的花儿都被吹得贴到了地上；接着，骤雨倾盆，啪啪地打着大地；电闪雷鸣，撕裂长空，草地似乎要被撕成碎片；但是，半个小时过后，风停雨歇，太阳从藏身处翩跹而出，就好像什么都没发生过一样。微风们欢笑着跑回来，小花儿们站起身来，微风们帮花儿摇落一身雨水，花儿快活地搔首弄姿，好像没出过任何意外。

9. 雏菊开出粉红色的花朵儿，这些花儿好像永远都开不完，它非常快乐，并深以此为傲；只要哪朵花儿的花叶一凋，新的花儿马上就会睁开眼睛。大大小小的蓓蕾，静静地等着绽放，就连深藏在离根部不远的叶子中间那些蓓蕾绿色的小花托也跃跃欲试。“我多惹人喜爱啊！”雏菊说，“我会一直开花。银莲花、地钱和血根草都有花期，过了花期就不会再开花了，而我会永远开下去；生成我这样多好啊！”

10. “但你要记住，”一株高大的牛蒡对她说，“你要记住，冬天总会降临的，这美好的花季总会过去的。”

“你这话什么意思？”雏菊骄傲地说道。她看着牛蒡，目光中闪过一丝厌恶。“你是个又粗俗又丑陋的老东西，所以性情乖戾。像我这样美人儿才会和善亲切。”

11. “啊，噢，”牛蒡夫人说，“你等着瞧吧。一个今年从种子里冒出来的丫头片子竟然对我如此无礼，真是反了！怎么说我也见识了、熬过了二十个寒冬！”

“食米鸟，你来告诉我，”雏菊说，“这个讨厌的牛蒡所说的是真的吗？她说冬天是什么意思？”

12. “我不知道——我不知道。”食米鸟说着，在空中翻了几个跟头，然后轻盈地落在一株蓟的头顶上唱道：

“我不知道，也不在乎；

要想快乐，飞到高处；

要想快乐，点亮矮处，

我只知道，叽叽喳喳欢笑。”

13. “喂，蜂鸟，你可知道关于冬天的事？”

“冬天！我从来没见过，”蜂鸟说，“我们有翅膀，到处追着夏天飞，只要冬天一露面，我们马上就会离开。”

“草地鹨，草地鹨，你听说过冬天吗？”雏菊问。

14. 草地鹨确定自己从来没听说过。“什么是冬天？”他困惑地问。

“蝴蝶，蝴蝶！”雏菊说，“快来告诉我，这里会有冬天吗？冬天是什么？”

蝴蝶哈哈大笑，她翩跹飞舞着说，“雏菊在说些什么呀？我从来没听说过冬天！冬天？哈！哈！冬天是什么？”

15. “看来，这只是牛蒡恶毒的说辞，”雏菊说，“就因为她不漂亮，她想把我的好心情也破坏掉。喂，亲爱的、可爱的大树，为我避风遮日的大树，到底有没有冬天这种东西呢？”

大树透过叶子，叹了口气，说：“有的，姑娘，会有冬天的。不过不要害怕，好牧羊人制造了夏天也制造了冬天，不管冬天还是夏天，都有自己节令的好处。享受夏天，但也不要害怕冬天。”

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