Caterpillar and the Polliwog

Caterpillar and the Polliwog 毛毛虫与蝌蚪 By Jack Kent 你一边生长一边改变,蝌蚪也一样。而且以一种特别的方式改变。 Caterpillars aren’t like other folks. As ducks and hippopotamuses and you and I get older, we get bigger. Especially hippopotamuses.毛毛虫没有像其他人。野鸭和河马,我和你变老,我们变大。尤其是河马。 But not caterpillars. They turn into butterflies. Turning into something else like that is not a thing anybody can do. 但毛毛虫不是。他们变成蝴蝶。变成了其他的东西,不是每个人都能做。 Down by the pond there lives a caterpillar who was very proud of being different. She bragged to her friends. “Wh en I grow up, I’m going to turn into something else.” she told the snail. “That nice,” said the snail who really didn’t care one way or the other. 池塘边住着一个毛毛虫, 她感到自己与众不同,所以很骄傲,她向 蜗牛吹牛说: “当我长大时, 我会变。”“太好了。”蜗牛说,其实他一点也不关心毛毛虫是否会变。 “When I grow up, I’m going to turn into something else.” she told the turtle. “I don’t blame you”, said the turtle, who didn’t much like wiggly things. “当我长大时, 我会变。”她又对海龟说。海龟有点不太喜欢这个爬来爬去的虫子。 “When I grow up, I’m going to turn into something else.” she told the polliwog. “What fun!”, said the polliwog “What are going to turn into?” But the caterpillar hurried on her way looking for someone else to tell her secret to. “当我长大时, 我会变。”她又告诉蝌蚪。“太好了。”蝌蚪说,“你会变成什么呢?”可是毛毛虫根 本没空回答他就走开了, 她要告诉更多的人她会变。 I wish I could turn into something else when I grow up!” said the polliwog. “You will” said the fish. “All polliwogs do.” “What am I going to turn into?” the polliwog asked. But the fish saw a tasty bug and dashed after it. “我希望我长大时会变。”蝌蚪说。“你会的,”鱼说, “所有的蝌蚪都会变。”“我会变成什么呢?”蝌蚪问,鱼没有时间回答他,她看见一只虫子就向虫子冲了过去。 “When I grow up” said the caterpillar, who had circled the pond and was going around for the second time, “when I grow up,” she told the Polliwog again, “I am going to turn into something else.” “So am I said the Polliwog. “You!” the caterpillar was so surprised she almost fell into the pond. “The fish said so,” the polliwog told her. “Fish know things. They go to school.” “当我长大时, ”毛毛虫绕着池塘跑了两圈后又对蝌蚪说,“当我长大时, 我会变。”“我也会。”蝌蚪说。“你?!”毛毛虫惊讶地差点掉进池塘里。“鱼也是这样说的,”蝌蚪告诉毛毛虫, “鱼知道很多事情, 她们上过学的。” The caterpillar was upset. “I thought only caterpillars could do it,” She said rather sadly. “What are we going to t urn into?” the polliwog asked. “Well, I am going to turn into a butterfly!” said the caterpillar. “ Then I guess I will too!” the polliwog said happily. “What fun! Let’s do it together!” 毛毛虫有点沮丧, “我原以为只有毛毛虫才会变呢。”她难过的说。“你会变成什么呢?”蝌蚪问毛毛虫。“嗯, 我长大后会变成蝴蝶。”毛毛虫说。“我猜我也会。”蝌蚪高兴地说, “太好了, 就让我们一齐变吧。” “All right,” the caterpillar agreed, although she would rather have done it alone. “But I get to go first!” The polliwog didn’t mind. He wasn’t at all sure how it was done, “I’ll watch you, “ he said. So when the time came, the caterpillar started to spin a cocoon. “This is the tricky part,” she said. “好吧,”毛毛虫说,虽然她只希望她自己会变,“但是我比你变得早。”蝌蚪不在意,他根本就不知道该怎么变, “我先看你变。”他说。于是变化的时候到了,毛毛虫开始吐丝结茧, “这是我变蝴蝶的技巧之一。”她说。The polliwog watched as the caterpillar spun. Soon only her head was uncovered. “Now I have to close th e lid,” she said. “And when I come out, I’ll be a butterfly.” “Go Ahead!” the polliwog said excitedly. “I want to see you do it!” “It will take a while,” the caterpillar warned. She started spinning again and was soon out of sight in the cocoon. 蝌蚪看着毛毛虫结茧, 悄悄地变了。“现在我要盖上盖子了。”毛毛虫说,“当我出来时我就变成蝴蝶了。”“继续变吧。”蝌蚪激动地说, “我要看看你是怎么变的。”“这需要一点时间啊。”毛毛虫说, 她继续吐丝结茧,不一会儿就把自己包住了。 For a long time nothing happened. But the polliwog was patient. He watched and watched and watched, for days and days ,and days.很长时间什么也没有发生,蝌蚪等啊等,看啊看, 许多,许多天过去了。 At last there was activity in the cocoon. The end of it opened and, very slowly, the caterpillar climbed out. Only she wasn’t a caterpillar anymore. She was a butterfly! A beautiful yellow butterfly. 最后,茧开始动了,茧的一端慢慢开口了,毛毛虫爬出来了,她已经不是毛毛虫了,她变成了一只美丽的黄蝴蝶。 The polliwog was so excited he hopped up and down with delight! He hopped up and down like a frog! “I was so busy watching you,” he said, “I didn’t notice what was happening to me!” 蝌蚪激动的跳起来,跳啊跳,像个青蛙。“我只顾得看你变了,”他说, “还没发现我自己也变了。”You’re a very handsome frog,” the butterfly said, as she flew off to try her new wings. But the frog was puzzled. I thought I was going to be a butterfly,” he said. “你变成了一只英俊的青蛙。”蝴蝶说着,试着展开自己的新翅膀飞走了。可是青蛙很迷惑, “我以为我也会变成蝴蝶呢。” A caterpillar wiggled by. “When I grow up, he said p roudly to the frog, “I am going to turn into something else!” But the frog wasn’t listening. He was admiring his reflection in the water. “ I am, you know, a handsome frog! He said. 又有一只毛毛虫爬过来, “当我长大时,我会变。”她骄傲地对青蛙说。可青蛙并不愿意听了,他在水里照了照自己,自言自语说: “你看,我是一只英俊的青蛙。”