4 Gardens and a Gardener

CHAPTER 4 Gardens and a Gardener Mary went through the little gate into a big garden. It had wide lawns and winding paths, trees, flowerbeds, and an old gray fountain. But everything was bare, and there was no water in the fountain. At the end of a path, she came to a wall with a green door. It opened into another walled garden. Another open door led to yet another walled garden. Mary didn't know that these were kitchen gardens for growing

第四章花园和一个园丁玛丽穿过小门进入了一个大花园。 它有宽阔的草坪和蜿蜒的小路，有树木、花坛和一个古老的灰色喷泉。 但一切都是光秃秃的，井里也没有水。 在一条小路的尽头，她来到一堵有绿色门的墙前。 它通向另一个有围墙的花园。 另一扇开着的门通向另一个有围墙的花园。 玛丽不知道这些菜园是用来种植的

fruit, vegetables, and herbs. They were certainly ugly in the middle of winter, she thought. She was still exploring when an old man came through one of the doors. He carried a spade over his shoulder. He didn't seem at all happy to see Mary. In her quite sharp voice, she asked, "What is this place?" Gruffly, he answered, "A kitchen garden. There's another beyond that door, and an orchard on the other side of that." "Can I go play in them?" Mary asked. "If you want, but there's nothing to see." Mary turned away and walked to the next green door. She entered a garden with beds of winter vegetables, some covered by glass frames. She found another wall with a green door, which was closed. Could it be the garden that no one had entered for ten years?

水果、蔬菜和草药。 她想，在隆冬时节，它们一定很难看。 她还在探索，这时一位老人从一扇门走了进来。 他肩上扛着一把铁锹。 他见到玛丽似乎一点也不高兴。 她用尖利的声音问道：“这是什么地方？”他粗声粗气地回答说：“菜园。 那扇门后面还有一个，门的另一边是一个果园。” “我可以穿着它们去玩吗？”玛丽问道。 “如果你想要的话，但是没有什么可看的。” 玛丽转过身去，走向下一扇绿色的门。 她走进一个菜园，菜园里种满了冬菜，有些还盖着玻璃架。 她发现另一堵墙上有一扇绿色的门，门是关着的。 会不会是那个十年没人进去的花园？

Mary grabbed the door handle, hoping it wouldn't open. But the handle gave way. She entered an orchard of bare fruit trees. Walls surrounded the orchard, but no more doors. She noticed that one wall seemed to go beyond the orchard. Maybe it led to something on the other side? On a treetop behind the wall, a robin redbreast was perching. He burst into his winter song. Mary perked up. The bird's friendly little whistle made her feel better, and she almost smiled. When he flew away, she wondered if she would see him again. Perhaps he lived in the mysterious locked garden. Mary was very curious about the locked garden. If Mr. Craven had loved his wife, why did he hate her garden? She walked back to the first kitchen garden

玛丽抓住门把手，希望门不会开。 但是把手松开了。她走进一个光秃秃的果树果园。 围墙围着果园，但没有门。 她注意到有一堵墙似乎延伸到了果园外面。 也许它指向了另一边的东西？ 墙后的树梢上，栖息着一只红胸知更鸟。 他突然唱起了他的冬歌。 玛丽振作起来。鸟儿友好的小哨声让她感觉好多了，她几乎笑了。 当他飞走的时候，她想知道是否还能再见到他。 也许他住在那个神秘的上锁的花园里。 玛丽对那个锁着的花园很好奇。 如果克雷文先生爱他的妻子，他为什么恨她的花园呢？ 她走回第一个菜园

and crept up on the old man, who was digging. "I visited the orchard," she reported. "But there's no door to the garden on the other side of the wall," she said crossly. "I did see a bird with a red breast in a treetop singing." The old man began to whistle, and then Mary heard a little rustle. A bird flew over to them. He perched on a clod of dirt near the gardener's foot. It was wonderful. The old man stopped digging. He asked the bird, "Where've you been, you cheeky little fellow? Have you begun courting this early in the year?" The bird hopped and pecked the ground for seeds and insects. He seemed sprightly and cheerful, and Mary started to feel the same way as she watched him. "Does he always come when you whistle?" she asked.

爬到正在挖土的老人身上。 “我参观了果园，”她报告说。 “可是墙那边没有花园的门，”她生气地说。 “我确实看到一只红胸鸟在树梢上唱歌。” 老人开始吹口哨，然后玛丽听到了轻微的沙沙声。 一只鸟向他们飞来。他坐在园丁脚边的一块泥土上。 太棒了。老人停止了挖掘。 他问鸟儿：“你去哪儿了，你这个厚脸皮的小家伙？” 你今年这么早就开始谈恋爱了吗？”那只鸟跳着啄着地面寻找种子和昆虫。 他看起来精神抖擞，心情愉快，玛丽看着他也开始有了同样的感觉。 “你一吹口哨他就来吗？”她问。

"Aye," the gardener said. "I've known him since he was a chick. He flew over from the other garden. But he was too weak to fly back for a few days. That's when we got friendly. He's a robin redbreast. They're the friendliest, most curious birds alive. See? He knows we're talking about him. He's a stuck- up one," the gardener chuckled. "Where's his family?" Mary asked. "Don't know. When he was strong enough to fly back to his nest, his brood had gone. But he's smart—he knew he was lonely, and he flew back tome." Mary took a step nearer the robin and looked at him very intently. "I'm lonely," she confided. Until then, she had only felt cross but didn't know why. The gardener stared at her. "Coming here from India—it's no wonder," he said. Then he began to dig again.

“是啊，”园丁说。“他还是只小鸡的时候我就认识他了。 他从另一个花园飞过来。 但他太虚弱了，几天后才飞回来。 就在那时我们变得友好起来。 他是一只红胸知更鸟。它们是世界上最友好、最好奇的鸟。 看到了吗?他知道我们在说他。 “他是个自大的家伙，”园丁咯咯地笑着说。 “他的家人呢？”玛丽问道。 “不知道。当他有足够的力气飞回巢时，他的孩子们已经走了。 但他很聪明——他知道自己很孤独，于是就飞回来了。” 玛丽向知更鸟走近了一步，非常专注地看着它。 “我很孤独，”她吐露道。 在那之前，她只是感到生气，但不知道为什么。 园丁盯着她。 “从印度到这里来，这不足为奇，”他说。 然后他又开始挖。

"What is your name?" Mary asked. "Ben Weatherstaff," he said. "I'm lonely, too, except when he's around. He's my only friend." "I've never had a friend," Mary said. "You and me are a good bit alike," Ben Weatherstaff said. "We both have faces like sour pickles. And we both act as sour as we look. Same nasty tempers, I guess." No one had ever spoken so plainly to Mary. She wondered if she really did look as sour as he said. A clear, rippling sound broke through her thoughts. The robin had flown into an apple tree nearby and was singing. Old Ben laughed. "He wants to make friends with you." Mary looked up at the robin. In a voice as soft and eager as any child's, she said. "Would you make friends with me? Would you?"

“你叫什么名字？”玛丽问道。 “本·威瑟斯塔夫。”他说。 “我也很孤独，除了他在身边的时候。 他是我唯一的朋友。”“我从来没有过朋友，”玛丽说。 “你和我有点像，”本·威瑟斯塔夫说。 “我们俩的脸都像酸黄瓜。 我们的行为和我们的样子一样酸溜溜。 我猜还是那个坏脾气。” 从来没有人对玛丽说过这么直率的话。 她不知道自己是不是真的像他说的那样愁眉苦脸。 一个清晰的、荡漾的声音冲破了她的思想。 知更鸟飞到了附近的一棵苹果树上，正在唱歌。 老本笑了。“他想和你交朋友。” 玛丽抬头看着知更鸟。 她用一种像孩子一样温柔而热切的声音说。 “你愿意和我交朋友吗？” 你会吗?”