009 送给贝丝的礼物

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Every morning was eventful at the March home, today being no different

马奇家的每个早晨都充满事端，今天也不例外。

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Amy had overslept and was very cranky

艾米睡过头了，脾气很暴躁。

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Her hair, her most precious asset, looked limp and lifeless

她的头发，她最宝贵的资产，看起来软塌塌的毫无生气。

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" May I please be excused from school?

“请问我能不去上学吗？

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I'm just not happy today," she whined, munching on a piece of dry bread that would have been warm and soft if she had gotten up in time to eat it

我今天就是高兴不起来，”她抱怨着，嚼着一片干面包，要是她按时起床吃，它本该是温热柔软的。

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" Well, then we should all stay home

“好吧，那我们都该待在家里。

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I'm not happy and neither is Meg," Jo shouted sarcastically from the foyer

我不高兴，梅格也不高兴，”乔在门厅里尖声挖苦道。

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Late as usual, the two older girls were hastening to get out the door

像往常一样迟了，两个大女孩正匆忙地往门外赶，

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but Jo couldn't find The Pirate's Enigma, a book she had borrowed from Aunt March

可乔找不到《海盗之谜》，一本她从马奇姑婆那儿借来的书。

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" Where could that stupid book be?" Jo yelled in frustration

“那本该死的书能跑到哪儿去？”乔沮丧地大叫。

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" Jo! Mind your tongue and mind your temper!"

"乔！注意你的言辞，控制你的脾气！"

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Mother rebuked as she yanked at Amy's knots

妈妈一边用力拉扯着艾米打结的头发，一边责备道。

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" I'll look for the book," Beth offered in her timid manner

"我去找书，" 贝丝怯生生地提议。

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" Pray for me that Aunt March won't have an urge to hear that story read to her today

"替我祈祷吧，希望马奇姑婆今天不会突然想听我念那个故事。

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I'll just pretend to be deaf or have a sore throat if she does," Jo remarked, shoving her arms into her thick coat, and finally stepping outside the door

要是她真要我念，我就装聋，或者假装喉咙痛，" 乔说着，把胳膊伸进厚外套里，终于走出门去。

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Blowing kisses at everyone, Meg and Jo began their trek to work

梅格和乔朝大家抛着飞吻，动身去上班了。

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When Mother went to the window to wave at her girls

当妈妈走到窗前向女儿们挥手时，

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Amy reluctantly gathered her school books, got her lunch pail from Hannah, and dragged her feet to the foyer

艾米不情愿地收拾起课本，从汉娜那里接过午餐桶，拖着脚步走向门厅。

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" You're so lucky you can stay home all day," Amy said wistfully to Beth

"你真幸运，可以整天待在家里，" 艾米向往地对贝丝说。

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At other times when Amy said this Beth would shake her head and say

往常艾米这样说时，贝丝会摇摇头说：

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" You're the lucky one. I wish I could go to school."

“你真幸运。我希望我可以去上学。”

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Today, however, Beth did not say anything because inside she was feeling very lucky

然而，今天贝丝什么也没说，因为她内心深觉自己非常幸运。

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Today she had something very special to look forward to

今天，她有件很特别的事可以盼着。

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It seemed to take an eternity before everyone was finally gone. Beth was all by herself

好像过了一辈子那么久，大家终于都走了。只剩贝丝自己一个人了。

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The kitchen door of the March home faced the Laurence mansion, in particular the conservatory, where the object of Beth's desire was

马奇家的厨房门正对着劳伦斯大宅，特别是那间温室，那里有着牵动着贝丝渴望的东西。

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Beth, however, had a major obstacle to overcome first: her fear

然而，贝丝得先克服一个大障碍：她的恐惧。

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" What if Mr. Laurence suddenly walks into the conservatory?" she said to herself

“要是劳伦斯先生突然走进温室怎么办？”她自言自语道。

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" What if Laurie hears me play and thinks I'm horrible

“要是劳里听到我弹琴，觉得我弹得一塌糊涂怎么办。

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Then what if he tells Jo? What if the door locks after I'm inside and I can't get out?"

然后他要是告诉乔怎么办？要是我进去后门锁上了，我出不来怎么办？”

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But no matter how many " what ifs " Beth could think of, her fear did not hold her back from the beautiful instrument inside

但是，不管贝丝想出多少个“要是”，她的恐惧都没有令她却步，不去靠近里面那件美丽的乐器。

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Taking a deep breath, she opened the kitchen door

深吸一口气，她打开了厨房的门。

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Sticking her head out and checking to make sure no one was around, she took one brave step forward

探出头确认四下无人后，她勇敢地向前迈了一步。

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Then, like a frightened field mouse, she scurried across the yard onto the stone pathway that led to the mansion

然后，像只受惊的田鼠一样，她飞快地穿过院子，跑向通往大宅的石径。

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Pausing to cool her flushed cheeks, Beth felt like an intruder, as if she were entering a home not her own

贝丝停下来，想让发烫的脸颊降降温。她感觉自己像个闯入者，仿佛正走进别人的家。

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Mr. Laurence, of course, had given his permission; yet, it was an odd sensation as Beth pushed open the glass doors to the conservatory

劳伦斯先生当然是允许了的；可是当贝丝推开暖房的玻璃门时，心里仍有一种奇怪的感觉。

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As Mr. Laurence had promised, the room was empty, and as before Beth caught her breath when her gaze fell upon the beautiful piano

正如劳伦斯先生所承诺的，房间里空无一人。和之前一样，当贝丝的目光落在那架美丽的钢琴上时，她屏住了呼吸。

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" Hello. I'm Beth." The magnificence of the musical instrument impelled her to introduce herself

“你好，我是贝丝。”这件乐器的壮丽华美，让她不由自主地做起了自我介绍。

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Giggling, she continued," Mr. Laurence says I must come every day and look after you."

她咯咯地笑着，继续说道：“劳伦斯先生说我必须每天来照看你。”

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She lightly stroked the keys." He doesn't want you to get dusty or for your keys to get stuck."

她轻轻抚过琴键。“他不想让你落灰，也不想让你的琴键卡住。”

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Even with Beth's amateur touch, she knew none of the polished keys ever got stuck

即使贝丝的弹奏还很生涩，她也知道，这些光滑的琴键一个都不会卡住。

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" But just between you and me," she leaned closer to the piano, as if she were whispering a secret

“不过，就咱俩私下说说，” 她把身子凑近钢琴，仿佛在跟它说悄悄话，

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" I was hoping he would ask so I could come and play music on you."

“我正盼着他开口邀请我呢，这样我就能过来弹弹你了。”

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Pulling the stool out, Beth carefully sat down on the soft velvet cushion

贝丝拉出琴凳，小心地在那柔软的天鹅绒坐垫上坐了下来。

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" Oh, look!" Beth reached out to open an old leather book resting on the stand

“哦，快看！” 贝丝伸手打开一本搁在谱架上的旧皮面书。

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Inside was a collection of sheet music, many of them songs that Beth knew

里面是一本乐谱集，其中好多曲子贝丝都认得。

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" You even prepared music for me to play. How kind you are!"

“你连让我弹的曲子都备好了，真是太好了！”

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Beth lovingly patted the top of the piano

贝丝爱怜地轻拍了拍钢琴的顶盖。

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After taking a moment to select a song, Beth clenched and unclenched her fists, as she'd seen pianists do

她花了点时间选好一首曲子，然后像她见过的钢琴家那样，攥了攥拳又松开。

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Then, ever so cautiously, she began to play

接着，她极其谨慎地开始弹奏起来。

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At first, the sounds were timid, like Beth, and unsure, lacking confidence and power

起初，琴声怯生生的，犹犹豫豫，就和她这人一样，缺乏自信和力量。

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However, as she practiced and became more acquainted with her new friend, she felt comfortable enough to open her soul

然而，随着练习，她与这位新朋友愈发熟络，她感到足够自在，可以敞开心扉了。

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Oblivious to the passing of time, Beth fell into a world of sound and harmony

贝丝忘记了时间，沉浸在一个由声音与和谐构成的世界里。

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True to her word, Beth visited the conservatory every day

贝丝信守诺言，每天都去暖房。

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Even though Hannah scolded her for not eating properly or practicing so long that her bones were stiff and numb

尽管汉娜常常责备她不好好吃饭，或是练习太久，以至筋骨僵硬麻木，

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Beth felt that nothing could give her greater happiness than the time she spent playing music

贝丝却觉得，没有什么比弹奏音乐的时光带给她更大的快乐了。

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Unknown to Beth, she already had a couple of secret admirers who also were finding joy and comfort in her melodies

贝丝并不知道，她已经有了一两个秘密的仰慕者，他们同样在她的旋律中找到了欢乐与慰藉。

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One of them should have been paying closer attention to his lessons, but found himself straining his ears to hear Beth's music

其中一人本该更专心地做功课，但他却发现自己正竖起耳朵，努力聆听着贝丝的音乐。

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After Laurie discovered he could hear Beth playing downstairs

自从劳里发现自己能在楼下听到贝丝的演奏后，

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he deliberately opened a window in the library in order to hear the music more clearly

他便故意打开书房的一扇窗户，好把音乐听得更真切。

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" Must you keep that window open? It's freezing in here," Mr. Brookes complained to his young pupil

“你非得开着那扇窗吗？这儿冷得要命，”布鲁克斯先生向他的小弟子抱怨道。

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Mr. Brookes was not amused since the temperature outside was way below zero

布鲁克斯先生可高兴不起来，因为外面的气温都降到零度以下好多了。

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The other admirer chose to sit in his study, lean back in his chair

另一位仰慕者则选择坐在他的书房里，靠在椅背上，

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and remember the time when his own little girl's music could be heard through those very walls

回想着他自己的小女儿的音乐也曾透过这些墙壁传来的时候。

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Since everyone was home on the weekends, Beth could not practice her beloved piano in the conservatory

因为周末大家都在家，贝丝没法去暖房弹她心爱的钢琴，

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but she continued to play the music in her mind wherever she was

但她无论身在何处，都在脑海里继续弹奏着那些乐曲。

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One Saturday, after returning from the grocer's with Hannah

一个星期六，贝丝和汉娜从杂货店回来，

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Beth found herself encircled by her sisters, all of them shouting with excitement at once

发现姐姐们把她围住了，大家同时兴奋地叫嚷起来。

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" You've got a gift, Beth!" screamed Amy

“你有礼物啦，贝丝！”艾米尖叫道。

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" A gift?" Beth asked, confused

“礼物？”贝丝困惑地问。

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" Come see it. Come!" Jo took Beth's arm and led her to the living room

“过来看看。快来！”乔拉着贝丝的胳膊，把她带到客厅。

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As she stepped into the familiar room, Beth's eyes immediately went to the corner where something new stood

当她走进熟悉的房间时，贝丝的目光立刻投向角落，那里摆着一件新东西。

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It was a beautiful solid oak piano

那是一架漂亮的实心橡木钢琴。

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" Is this really for me?" she whispered, her voice trembling

“这真的是给我的吗？”她低声说，声音颤抖着。

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" Look at this card, Beth!" Jo swung a white envelope in her face

“看看这张卡片，贝丝！”乔在她面前摇晃着一个白色信封。

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" Read it! Hurry, Beth!" Amy pleaded

“读呀！快点儿，贝丝！”艾米央求道。

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" I can't. I'm too nervous. Jo, can you read it for me, please?" asked Beth

“我不行。我太紧张了。乔，你能帮我读吗？”贝丝问。

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Jo ripped the envelope open and read in a loud voice

乔撕开信封，大声读了起来。

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My dearest Beth, I'm afraid you may not like what I am about to say

我最亲爱的贝丝，恐怕你也许不喜欢我接下来要说的话。

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But I must confess that I have been listening to your beautiful music from my study

但我必须承认，我一直在书房里聆听你美妙的音乐。

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You may not realize it but your lovely melodies have brought much happiness back into my home

你可能没有意识到，但你可爱的旋律给我的家重新带来了许多欢乐。

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Therefore, as a token of my deepest appreciation, please accept this gift, which, at one time, belonged to my own daughter

因此，作为我最深切感激的一点心意，请收下这份礼物，它曾经属于我自己的女儿。

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May it bring much music and joy to your home and hearts, as it has done to mine

愿它给你家和你心中带来许多音乐和欢乐，正如它曾为我家所做的那样。

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Your greatest admirer, Mr. Laurence

你最忠实的仰慕者，劳伦斯先生