002 小小海公主

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Each princess had her own small garden

每位公主都有一个小小的花园。

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One princess made her flower bed in the shape of a whale

一位公主把花坛做成了鲸鱼的形状。

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Another princess made her garden in the shape of a shell

另一位公主把花园做成了贝壳的形状。

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The sisters filled their gardens with odd things they had found in sunken ships

姐妹们用沉船里找到的各种稀奇玩意儿装点花园。

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But the Little Mermaid's garden was simple

但小美人鱼的花园很朴素。

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It had only red flowers and a statue of a human boy

那里只有红色的花朵和一座人类男孩的雕像。

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The statue had been her mother's, and the Little Mermaid loved it

这座雕像本是母亲的，小美人鱼珍爱它。

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While her sisters played in their gardens, the Little Mermaid sat quietly in hers

当姐妹们在自己花园里玩耍时，小美人鱼只是静静地坐在她的花园中。

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Looking at the boy, she wondered about humans and the world above

她望着那个男孩，好奇人类和上面的世界是什么样子。

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" What is it like in the Upper World?" she asked her grandmother one day

“上面的世界是什么样子的？”有一天她问祖母。

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" Oh, little one, there is so much to see!" said the Wise Mermaid

“哦，小宝贝，陆地上有太多好看的东西啦！” 智慧美人鱼说。

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" There are thick forests of trees that turn colors when the air turns cold

“那里有茂密的森林，天气变冷时，树叶会变换颜色。

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Soon after, their leaves fall to the ground

过不了多久，叶子就会飘落到地上。

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Then the snow comes."

然后雪就来了。”

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" Snow?" said the Little Mermaid." What's that?"

“雪？” 小美人鱼问，“那是什么呀？”

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" Snow is made of thousands of small ice flakes," replied her grandmother

“雪是由成千上万片小冰花组成的，” 她的祖母回答说。

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" In winter these flakes fall from the sky

“冬天，这些小冰花从天空飘落。

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But in summer green grass covers the ground

但到了夏天，绿色的草地铺满大地。

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And the flowers give off a lovely scent."

花朵还会散发出迷人的芳香。”

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" It sounds wonderful," the Little Mermaid said

“听起来太美了，” 小美人鱼说。

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" Here our trees always look the same

“这里的树总是老样子，

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And the flowers have no smell at all."

花儿也一点香味都没有。”

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The Wise Mermaid told her more

智慧美人鱼继续讲道：

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" In the Upper World, you can look up in the sky and clearly see the sun, moon, and stars

“在人间，你抬头仰望天空，就能清楚地看到太阳、月亮和星星，

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And birds fly from tree to tree, singing lovely songs."

小鸟在树木间飞来飞去，唱着动听的歌。”

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" Tell me about the animals, Grandmother," the Little Mermaid begged

“给我讲讲动物吧，奶奶。”小美人鱼央求道。

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" Some fly, as I said

“有的会飞，就像我说的，

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But many have four legs and walk on the ground

但是很多都有四条腿，在地上走路。

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Humans walk on two legs, and they are very good at building things

人类用两条腿走路，而且他们很会建造东西。

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They make lots of houses, which become towns."

他们盖了许多房子，就变成了城镇。”

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The Little Mermaid wanted to hear more

小美人鱼还想听更多。

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" They also build ships, don't they?"

“他们还会造船，对吧？”

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" Oh yes, little one," her grandmother said

“哦，是的，孩子，”她的祖母说。

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" But you already know that."

“但你已经知道这些了。”

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" I know, but I love to hear about humans

“我知道，可我就是喜欢听关于人类的事。

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They come so close to us, sailing above

他们在上面航行，离我们这么近。

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But their world seems so far away."

可他们的世界又像是遥不可及。”

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" Yes, humans are very different from us," said her grandmother

“是啊，人类跟我们很不一样，”她的祖母说。

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" They don't live as long as sea folk

“他们没有海族人长寿。

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We live for three hundred years!

我们可以活三百年呢！

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But humans have souls."

但人类拥有灵魂。”

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" What is a soul?" the Little Mermaid asked

“灵魂是什么？”小美人鱼问道。

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" I don't know, little one," the Wise Mermaid replied

“我也不知道，孩子，”智慧美人鱼答道。

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" I have heard a soul can live forever

“我听说灵魂能永远活着。

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But humans don't really know what a soul is either

但人类其实也不清楚灵魂是什么。

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Whatever it is, I think it must be something special."

不管它是什么，我想一定是很特别的东西。”

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" I want to know everything about humans!"

“我想知道关于人类的一切！”

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" When you are 15 years old, you will see," said her grandmother

“等你满15岁，就能看见了，”她的祖母说。

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" You'll swim to the surface and watch the ships sail by."

“你可以游到海面上，看船只驶过。”

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" But I want to go now!" the Little Mermaid pleaded

“可我现在就想去！”小美人鱼恳求道。

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" Be patient — your turn will come in five years," said her grandmother, smiling

“耐心点——五年后就轮到你了，”她的祖母微笑着说。

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" But you will find, dear, that our home down here is better than any place else."

“不过，亲爱的，你会发现我们海底的家比任何地方都好。”

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The years passed and the Little Mermaid's sisters went to the Upper World

时光流逝，小美人鱼的姐姐们都去了上面的世界。

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But she had to wait

但她只能等待。

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So on clear nights, she looked up at the moon and stars

于是，在晴朗的夜晚，她就仰望月亮和星星。

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Whenever a shadow swept across them, she knew it was a ship passing overhead

每当有影子掠过它们，她就知道有船从头顶驶过。

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Eagerly the Little Mermaid stretched her white arms up toward the bottom of the ship

小美人鱼急切地向着船底伸出白皙的手臂。

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Someday she would touch the world above

总有一天，她会触碰到上面的世界。