My OperaFather's oak
Saturday, April 7, 2007 6:05:18 AM
【橡树爸爸】
I don’t remember when I was born. All I know is that my first cradle has been an oak leaf and that the light filtered through the branches has tenderly caressed me. I was only a little acorn1 but the light was my mother. I was living wrapped up in a leaf near the heart of my father, the old oak.
My parents loved me very much: my mother was waking me up each morning with sunrays and my father was singing to me each evening leaf lullabies2 and I was falling asleep in the leaf’s cradle, dreaming of angels.
But one morning when I woke up, all forest had been covered by gold. I was so happy that I wanted to sing, but my father’s sadness has broken my joy.
“The fall is already here, little girl,” he said. “And now we have to pass away. But don’t be afraid; next spring we’ll be back again for the earth to rejoice3.”
And I still have lived like this for some time, each day in more light, each day between fewer leaves, until one da whenmy father dropped me down from his old and tired arms. And very soon it has snowed from the angels’wings and all my sleep has become angel wings and silver moon until one morning when I woke up gently touched by a snail’s horns.
“Good morning, dad!” I said.
“Good spring, little girl!” answered the old oak.
“But what’s this? All winter long I have dreamed of millions of angels and now I woke up with millions of eyes. What happened, dad?”
My father didn’t answer me, but I found the answer in the infinitely4 multiplied5 echo of my words. I wasn’t anymore the little acorn who had sadly entered the winter’s sleep. I was a rustling forest.
我不记得我出生在何时。我只知道我的第一个摇篮曾是一片橡树叶，阳光从树枝间透过来，温柔地爱抚着我。我只是一颗小小的橡子，但阳光是我的母亲。我被一片叶子包裹着，生活在我父亲——那棵老橡树的心旁。
我的父母非常爱我：每天早晨母亲用阳光把我唤醒；每天晚上父亲则用沙沙的树叶声给我唱催眠曲，我在树叶摇篮里进入了梦乡，梦见了天使。
但有一天早晨，当我醒来时，整个树林一片金黄。我快乐得想放声歌唱, 但父亲的悲伤打断了我的欢乐。
“秋天已经来了, 小女孩，”他说，“现在我们必须离去。但不要害怕；明年春天，我们还会回来，和大地一起欢庆。”
而我仍像这样生活了一段时间，每天的阳光越来越多，每天树间的叶子越来越少，直到有一天，父亲将我从衰老而疲惫的双臂上放下去。没过多久，雪花便从天使的翅膀上飘落下来，我所有的睡梦都变成了天使的翅膀和银色的月光，直到一天早晨，我被一只蜗牛的触角温柔地触醒。w
“早安，爸爸!” 我说。
“春天好，小女孩！”老橡树回答说。
“可这是怎么回事? 整个漫长的冬天，我曾梦到数百万的天使，现在我醒来却带着数百万的眼睛。发生了什么事, 爸爸?”
父亲没有回答我，但我从我话音的众多回声中找到了答案。我不再是那颗悲伤地进入冬眠的小橡子，而是一片飒飒作响的树林。w
1.acorn[5eIkC:n]n.橡树果；橡子
2.lullaby[5lQlEbaI]n.摇篮曲；催眠曲
3.rejoice[rI5dVIs ]v.欣喜；欢喜
4.infinitely[5InfInItlI]adv.无穷地；无限地
5.multiply[5mQltIplaI]v.使（大大）增加
I don’t remember when I was born. All I know is that my first cradle has been an oak leaf and that the light filtered through the branches has tenderly caressed me. I was only a little acorn1 but the light was my mother. I was living wrapped up in a leaf near the heart of my father, the old oak.
My parents loved me very much: my mother was waking me up each morning with sunrays and my father was singing to me each evening leaf lullabies2 and I was falling asleep in the leaf’s cradle, dreaming of angels.
But one morning when I woke up, all forest had been covered by gold. I was so happy that I wanted to sing, but my father’s sadness has broken my joy.
“The fall is already here, little girl,” he said. “And now we have to pass away. But don’t be afraid; next spring we’ll be back again for the earth to rejoice3.”
And I still have lived like this for some time, each day in more light, each day between fewer leaves, until one da whenmy father dropped me down from his old and tired arms. And very soon it has snowed from the angels’wings and all my sleep has become angel wings and silver moon until one morning when I woke up gently touched by a snail’s horns.
“Good morning, dad!” I said.
“Good spring, little girl!” answered the old oak.
“But what’s this? All winter long I have dreamed of millions of angels and now I woke up with millions of eyes. What happened, dad?”
My father didn’t answer me, but I found the answer in the infinitely4 multiplied5 echo of my words. I wasn’t anymore the little acorn who had sadly entered the winter’s sleep. I was a rustling forest.
我不记得我出生在何时。我只知道我的第一个摇篮曾是一片橡树叶，阳光从树枝间透过来，温柔地爱抚着我。我只是一颗小小的橡子，但阳光是我的母亲。我被一片叶子包裹着，生活在我父亲——那棵老橡树的心旁。
我的父母非常爱我：每天早晨母亲用阳光把我唤醒；每天晚上父亲则用沙沙的树叶声给我唱催眠曲，我在树叶摇篮里进入了梦乡，梦见了天使。
但有一天早晨，当我醒来时，整个树林一片金黄。我快乐得想放声歌唱, 但父亲的悲伤打断了我的欢乐。
“秋天已经来了, 小女孩，”他说，“现在我们必须离去。但不要害怕；明年春天，我们还会回来，和大地一起欢庆。”
而我仍像这样生活了一段时间，每天的阳光越来越多，每天树间的叶子越来越少，直到有一天，父亲将我从衰老而疲惫的双臂上放下去。没过多久，雪花便从天使的翅膀上飘落下来，我所有的睡梦都变成了天使的翅膀和银色的月光，直到一天早晨，我被一只蜗牛的触角温柔地触醒。w
“早安，爸爸!” 我说。
“春天好，小女孩！”老橡树回答说。
“可这是怎么回事? 整个漫长的冬天，我曾梦到数百万的天使，现在我醒来却带着数百万的眼睛。发生了什么事, 爸爸?”
父亲没有回答我，但我从我话音的众多回声中找到了答案。我不再是那颗悲伤地进入冬眠的小橡子，而是一片飒飒作响的树林。w
1.acorn[5eIkC:n]n.橡树果；橡子
2.lullaby[5lQlEbaI]n.摇篮曲；催眠曲
3.rejoice[rI5dVIs ]v.欣喜；欢喜
4.infinitely[5InfInItlI]adv.无穷地；无限地
5.multiply[5mQltIplaI]v.使（大大）增加
