Chapter 12

CHAPTER 12 The first big blizzard hit the very next week, a howling storm that came in the night and lasted for three days. The weather cleared up until early November, and then it snowed on and off for most of the next two months. A Christmas Day ice storm left icicles hanging off the soddy roof, and all the way to the ground. Franny licked one and got her tongue stuck. Ma

第12章就在接下来的一个星期，第一场大暴风雪来了，一场嚎叫的暴风雨在夜里降临，持续了三天。 直到11月初天气才放晴，然后在接下来的两个月的大部分时间里断断续续地下雪。 圣诞节那天的一场冰暴把冰柱从铺满草皮的屋顶上挂下来，一直挂到地面上。 弗兰妮舔了一只，舌头被卡住了。 妈

had to melt some of the icicle with warm water so poor Franny's tongue wouldn't tear in half. But it turned out that winter was just getting started. On January 5, John woke up shivering. The inside of the soddy walls shimmered with white frost. His teeth chattered so hard he was afraid they'd shatter. Pa checked the thermometer outside their front door. "Minus twenty," he announced with a brrrrrrrr. Ma fed more coal into the stove, but it didn't do much good. When it got this cold outside, even the thick dirt walls of the soddy couldn't keep the warm air from seeping out. Of course it was too cold for school. Nobody could go out in this weather. John wished he could stay in bed, wrapped tight in his quilt. But Shadow and Princess needed breakfast. He bundled up in his heavy woolen coat and scarf and mittens and stepped outside.

不得不用温水融化一些冰柱，这样可怜的弗兰妮的舌头才不会被撕成两半。 但事实证明，冬天才刚刚开始。 1月5日，约翰颤抖着醒来。 潮湿的墙壁里闪着白霜。 他的牙齿打颤得很厉害，他担心它们会碎。 爸爸检查了门外的温度计。 “减20。”他大声说。 妈妈又往炉子里添了些煤，但还是没起什么作用。 当外面这么冷的时候，即使是厚厚的土墙也不能阻止温暖的空气渗出来。 当然，天气太冷了，不适合上学。 这种天气谁也不能出去。 约翰希望他能躺在床上，紧紧地裹在被子里。 但是影子和公主需要早餐。 他穿上厚厚的羊毛大衣，戴上围巾和连指手套，走了出去。

The cold seemed to reach into his lungs and freeze his breath. His eyes watered and the tears froze to his cheeks. He rushed into the barn and warmed himself up by huddling next to Shadow. He tried to milk Princess, but only a few squirts came out. And the milk froze before it even hit the bucket. As he came out of the barn, he saw Pa standing in front of one of their haystacks. It looked like someone — or something — had chewed right through its center. "What happened?" John asked. "Some animal must have slept there last night," Pa said. John noticed little paw prints leading to and from the stack. "Looks like it was a fox," Pa said. "He hid in a haystack?" John asked. "Sure," Pa said. "The walls are good and thick, keeps the cold out."

寒冷似乎进入了他的肺部，冻结了他的呼吸。 他的眼睛湿润了，泪水冻结在脸颊上。 他冲进谷仓，蜷缩在影子身边取暖。 他想挤公主的奶，但只挤出了几根。 牛奶还没倒进桶里就冻住了。 当他走出谷仓时，他看见爸爸站在他们的一个干草堆前。 看起来像是有人——或者什么东西——把它的中心咬穿了。 “发生什么事了?”约翰问道。 “昨晚一定有动物睡在那里，”爸爸说。 约翰注意到一些小爪印通向和离开烟囱。 “看起来像是一只狐狸，”爸爸说。 “他藏在干草堆里？”约翰问道。 “当然，”爸爸说。“墙又厚又好，可以御寒。”

John helped Pa fix the haystack. By the time he came in for breakfast, his face was completely numb. Icicles hung from his eyelashes. It took two mugs of Ma's tea to warm him up again. For a solid week, they couldn't leave the soddy except to feed the animals and to get water. They couldn't even use the outhouse. Ma put up a curtain in the corner, and they used a bucket. As the days dragged by, John started to feel like a pickle trapped in a jar — a cold and very smelly jar. But on the morning of January 12, Franny shook John awake. "It's summer!" she announced. "Not quite," Pa laughed. "But it warmed up. It's almost thirty degrees!" And after the bone-cracking cold of the last week, it did feel practically like summer. John had

约翰帮爸爸修理干草堆。 当他进来吃早餐的时候，他的脸完全麻木了。 他的睫毛上挂着冰柱。 他喝了两杯马的茶才又暖和起来。 整整一个星期，除了喂动物和取水，他们不能离开这片草地。 他们甚至不能使用外屋。 妈妈在角落里挂上了窗帘，他们用了一个水桶。 日子一天天过去，约翰开始觉得自己像被困在罐子里的泡菜——一个又冷又臭的罐子。 但是在1月12日的早晨，弗兰尼把约翰摇醒了。 “夏天到了！”她宣布。 “不完全是，”爸爸笑着说。“但它变暖了。 快三十度了！”在经历了上周刺骨的寒冷之后，现在确实感觉像是夏天了。 约翰

only one thought: They would be able to go to school. John rushed through his chores and gobbled up his porridge, and he and Franny flew out the door. Ma called after them from the doorway. "Wait! Your mittens and scarves!" "Don't need them, Ma!" John hollered back. "It's summer, Ma, remember?" Franny laughed. As she and John walked, Franny looked up at the sky. "Look," she said. "It looks like a fairy tale." The sky did look different, pale blue and streaked with gold. John had never seen anything like it.

只有一个念头：他们可以上学了。 约翰匆匆做完家务，狼吞虎咽地喝完粥，然后和弗兰妮飞奔出了门。 妈妈在门口喊他们。 “等等!你的手套和围巾！”“不需要，妈妈！”约翰喊道。 “现在是夏天，妈，记得吗？”弗兰妮笑了。 当她和约翰走着的时候，弗兰妮抬头看了看天空。 “看，”她说。“这看起来就像童话故事。” 天空看起来确实不一样了，是淡蓝色的，夹杂着金色的条纹。 约翰从未见过这样的东西。