叶子1A Girl Named Leaf

园中开着艳艳的花，有蝴蝶儿飞，也有鸟儿叫。小姑娘叶子，唱着歌，在打旋舞。为了扑蝴蝶把裙子扯破。妈妈站在门口。

Gorgeous flowers were in full bloom， with butterflies dancing and birds singing. A little girl named Leaf ran after the butterflies， singing and spinning， without caring that her dress had got caught and torn. Her mother stood at the door and said reproachfully：

“叶子，你这样孩子。”

“Leaf， watch what you’re doing！”

她什么都不听见，花枝一排一排地倒在脚下，把蝴蝶扑在手里。

Ignoring her mother， she deftly caught a butterfly in her hand after trampling down quite a few rows of flowers.

太阳把雪照成水了，从房檐滴到了满阶。后来树枝发芽，树叶成荫了。后园里又飞着去年的蝴蝶。五月来到，后园和去年一样，蝴蝶戏着小姑娘们玩，蝴蝶被扑着。可是叶子，她不扑蝴蝶了，尽管在那儿幽思，望着天上多彩的云，望着插向云中的树梢，一会用扇子遮住她幽思的眼睛。

The snow on the roof began to melt in the sun， dripping from the eaves onto the steps in front of the door. Later， the trees sprouted and offered shade. Fluttering in the back garden were last year’s butterflies. It was May now. Like last spring， little girls were frolicking with butterflies， trying to catch one or two of them. Yet instead of getting involved in the play， Leaf was sitting there， lost in thought， first gazing at the clouds and the sky-piercing treetops， then shielding her pensive eyes with a fan.

妈妈站在门口。

Her mother， standing at the door， asked with concern：

“叶子，你为什么总坐在那儿想啊，脸儿怕瘦了？”

“Leaf， why do you always sit there in thought？ You’re wasting away with worry.”

她常常在园里静思，暑假慢慢地来到，表哥——莺，回来了。以后花园里，又是旋舞，扑蝴蝶。叶子的歌声天天在后园里鲜明着。莺哥和叶子坐在树下，树叶有时落在腿上，后来树叶绕着腿。

She often sat there， lost in quiet reverie， until the summer holiday came and her cousin Oriole came back. They frolicked with butterflies in the garden， her songs resounding in the air. They sat side by side under a tree， watching as the leaves fell， some landing on their lap， some floating around their feet.

暑假过去，莺哥回学校了，园里飞发树叶。只因没有蜂儿，鸟雀回巢，蝴蝶飞过墙东不再回来，一切被莺哥带了去似的。2叶子倒在床上害病，脸儿渐渐黄，爸妈着急，医生来了一个又一个，药瓶摆在床头，脸儿更黄更瘦。3

When the holiday was over， Oriole left for school. With tree leaves falling over the garden， bees were no longer to be seen， birds went back to their nests， and the butterflies disappeared beyond the eastern wall， as if all were leaving with him. Leaf fell ill， and her cheeks gradually sank in. Her parents， burning with worry， invited one doctor after another. Bottles of pills were laid by her bed. Her face grew sallow and thin.

外面飘起白白的雪，妈妈问：

Outside， white snowflakes began to fall. Mother asked：

“为什么病呢？对妈妈说。”

“Why are you so sick？ Tell me， my child.”

叶子只是默默地等着寒假4，常常翻着日历，十号，十一号……十五号了，她慰莺哥哥接近着她了，穿得干净的衣裳，坐在窗里望。真的有人在叫门，叶子心跳着。妈妈去开了门，穿着青制服，青制帽，踏着雪响，莺哥微笑着。他问：“叶子呢？”

Leaf remained silent. She did nothing but wait for the winter holiday. She flipped through the calendar and counted the days： the tenth， eleventh ... fifteenth. She knew her cousin Oriole was coming back soon， so she put on her clean clothes， and sat by the window， looking out. Finally there came a knock at the gate. Her heart missed a beat. Her mother went to open the gate and let in a boy in a black cap and uniform， snow crunching under his feet. It was Oriole， grinning. “Where is Leaf？” he asked.

说话时他看着叶子在窗里向他笑了笑。妈妈说着关于叶子病的话走进客厅了。妈妈又说：“叶子，半年是闹着病，脸儿黄瘦。”

Then he saw Leaf was smiling at him behind the window， while her mother led him to the main room， telling him more about the girl’s condition. She added， “Leaf has been ill for half a year now. Her face has become pale and haggard.”

莺哥慌忙着去见叶子，可是他走进内室了，衣上带着冷气。走近叶子的床，向她问：“病了吧？很弱。”

Oriole hurried on into her room， bringing in a gust of cold air. Stepping close to her bed， he asked， “How do you feel now？ Still weak？”

她感到茫然了，眼睛无力地瞅着床，没有答话，把头低下。他没有再问，心痛着走进内室去。妈妈在客厅里说着叶子的病时，叶子在屋里听着哭了，面向着飞雪的窗外5。

Unable to find the words， she lowered her head， eyes fixed on the sheets. With a heavy heart， he silently went back to the main room， where Leaf’s mother told him more about her. Overhearing their conversation， Leaf sobbed， raising her head only to see a world of whirling snow outside the window.

在东房莺哥常常发闷6，有时整夜不灭灯，后来咳嗽，都说孩子大了应该定亲。他的叔叔来，说谁家的女子好，问他：“你愿意不？我想你的学费都是舅家供给，又是住在舅家，不能信意吧？”他的叔叔又指着叶子的爸爸和妈妈说：“并且舅父和舅母也同意。”

Oriole stayed in the eastern room. He often appeared depressed， and sometimes the light in his room remained on all night. Later he developed a cough. Elders began to show concern for his marriage， saying a boy his age should be engaged. An uncle on his father’s side came and introduced a girl to him， asking， “What do you think of her？” Pointing towards Leaf’s parents， he continued， “They’ve been supporting your education and accommodation. Since they agree with me， how could you refuse？”

就是那夜，他整夜寻思着。第二天他的爸爸戴着没有耳朵的帽子背着包袱来了，没有进客厅，简直到东房去。唉，莺哥怎不难过呢。妈妈死了，爸爸上山去打柴，自己住在舅家。于是他哭了，爸爸也哭了。

An inner debate kept him awake all night. The next day his father came with a parcel on his back and a cap without earflaps on his head. He went straight into Oriole’s room without going to greet his host in the main room. Alas， how should Oriole feel？ His mother had died， and his father had to venture into the mountains to collect firewood for a living. He was living as a guest in his uncle’s house. He sobbed， and so did his father.