Max冬冬

Good for Me and You

Today in school we learned about what foods are good for us.
I asked why carrots are better for me than cookies.
“Because carrots have vitamins to help you grow,” Miss Kitty told me. “Cookies just taste good.”
In gym, we did lots of exercises. First, we jumped rope. I jumped the fastest, but the rope was a little too long.
We had a contest to see who could do the most sit-ups and push-ups. I won—almost.
The next day, I made lunch for Mom, Dad, and Little Sister.
“Surprise!” I said. “Eat every bite, because all of this food is good for you.”
After lunch, I told my family I had another surprise. I took them all on a bike ride.
“Come on, Dad!” I said. “You can do it!”
The next day when Tiger came over to play video games, I had a great idea.
I called all of our friends to tell them.
Me and My friends played football all afternoon. I scored the touchdown that won the game.
The next morning, I walked to school instead of taking the bus. I had to hurry because walking sure takes longer.
At lunch, I almost had a brownie for dessert, but I decided to have an apple instead.
On the way home, we saw a big sign.
“Look,” said Gabby. “There’s going to be a race in Critterville.”
“Let’s run in the race!” I said.
Everybody cheered.
Gabby said we should do exercises to get ready for the race.
But then I got hungry, so I stopped to have a snack.
Tiger and Malcolm were hungry, too, so I gave each of them a snack. Exercise sure gives you a big appetite.
The next day, we went swimming. I wore my snorkel and my flippers because they make me go faster.
After that, we practiced running as fast as we could. I beat Tiger…
…but Gator beat me.
Malcolm beat all three of us…
…but Gabby beat Malcolm. Gabby’s really fast.
The day of the race, we all took our places at the starting line.
“On your marks, get set, do!” called the announcer.
Then he blew a whistle.
I got off to a fast start.
I didn’t win, but I ran the whole way without stopping. Doing stuff that’s good for you isn’t just healthy, it’s lots of fun, too.

My Trip to the Hospital

We were playing soccer and the score was tied. I ran and kicked the ball as hard as I could, but the goalie was in the way.
“Goal!” shouted Tiger. “We won!”
“Ow!” I screamed.
My leg hurt a lot, but I hardly cried at all.
“Don’t worry, Little Critter,” said Dad.
“You’ll be okay,” said Mom.
An ambulance came. I was put on this skinny bed called a stretcher and then I got carried off the field. The whole soccer team waved good-bye.
Mom came with me in the ambulance. I held her hand because she looked a little scared.
When we got to the hospital, I got to ride on the stretcher all the way inside.
A nurse listened to my heart with this thing called a stethoscope. Then she let me try the stethoscope on Mom.
“Wow, Mom, your heart is beating really fast,” I said.
The nurse gave me a big lollipop and told me I was very, very brave.
The doctor came to examine my leg.
“This may hurt a little,” he said.
It sure did, but I took a deep breath and counted backwards 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1…and then it was over.
“You have a broken leg, Little Critter,” he said.
“Do you have the right tools to fix it?” I asked.
The doctor nodded. Then he gave me a cool sticker that said LITTLE CHAMP because he said I was a real champ.
Next I went to have special pictures taken called X-rays. The nurse took the pictures with this big machine that could have been on a spaceship. She said the X-rays showed all the bones in my leg.
“You know, Super Critter has X-ray vision,” I told the nurse. “That means he can see through stuff, too, just like this machine.”
After that, it was the time to get my cast. The doctor started wrapping bandages all around my leg.
“I feel like a mummy,” I said.
A little while later, the nurse came to check my cast. She said I could go home soon, but first…
…I had to learn how to use my crutches. My cast sure was heavy. It almost made me fall over…
…but I kept trying.
Finally, I got it right. “Good job, Little Critter!” said the nurse. “Now you can go home.”
Little Sister and Dad picked us up.
Everybody wanted to help me with my crutches, but I told them I could do it myself. I walked all the way to the front door and I barely slipped once.
Mom made spaghetti and meatballs, my favorite dinner in the whole world, and I got to eat it in front of the TV.
I was sure happy to be home.
At school, everyone said I was a hero.
“We won the game all because of you, Little Critter,” said Tiger.
Then all my friends signed my cast.
By the time they were done…
…it looked like a rainbow!

The Mitten

Once there was a boy named Nicki who wanted his new mittens made from wool as white as snow.
At first, his grandmother, Baba, did not want to knit white mittens.
“If you drop one in the snow,” she warned, “you’ll never find it.”
But Nicki wanted snow-white mittens, and finally Baba made them.
After she finished she said, “When you come home, first I will look to see if you are safe and sound, but then I will look to see if you still have your snow-white mittens.”
So off Nicki went. And it wasn’t long until one of his new mittens dropped in the snow and was left behind.
A mole, tired from tunneling along, discovered the mitten and burrowed inside. It was cozy and warm and just the right size, so he decided to stay.
A snowshoe rabbit came hopping by. He stopped for a moment to admire his winter coat. It was then that he saw the mitten, and he wiggled in, feet first. The mole didn’t think there was room for both of them, but when he saw the rabbit’s big kickers he moved over.
Next a hedgehog came snuffling along. Having spent the day looking under wet leaves for things to eat, he decided to move into the mitten and warm himself. The mole and the rabbit were bumped and jostled, but not being ones to argue with someone covered with prickles, they made room.
As soon as the hedgehog disappeared into the mitten, a big owl, attracted by the commotion, swooped down. When he decided to move in also, the mole, the rabbit, and the hedgehog grumbled. But when they saw the owl’s glinty talons, they quickly let him in.
Up through the snow appeared a badger. He eyed the mitten and began to climb in. The mole, the rabbit, the hedgehog, and the owl were not pleased. There was no room left, but when they saw his diggers, they gave him the thumb.
It started snowing, but the animals were snug in the mitten. A waft of warm steam rose in the air, and a fox trotting by stopped to investigate. Just the sight of the cozy mitten made him feel drowsy. The fox poked his muzzle in. When the mole, the rabbit, the hedgehog, the owl, and the badger saw his shiny teeth, they gave the fox lots of room.
A great bear lumbered by. He spied the mitten all plumped up. Not being one to be left out in the cold, he began to nose his way in. the animals were packed in as tightly as could be. But what animal would argue with a bear?
The mitten swelled and stretched. It was pulled and bulged to many times its size. But Baba’s good knitting held fast.
Along came a meadow mouse, no bigger than an acorn. She wriggled into the one space left, and made herself comfortable on top of the great bear’s nose.
The bear, tickled by the mouse’s whiskers, gave an enormous sneeze.
Aaaaa-aaaaa-aaaaa-ca-chew!
The force of the sneeze shot the mitten up into the sky, and scattered the animals in all directions.
On his way home, Nicki saw a white shape in the distance. It was the lost mitten silhouetted against the blue sky.
As he ran to catch his snow-white mitten, he saw Baba’s face in the window. First she looked to see if he was safe and sound, and then she saw that he still had his new mittens.

The Last Leaf

最后一片叶子

作者：冬冬 翻译：冬爸

The autumn wind was blowing. It was time once more for the leaves to rest.

秋风瑟瑟。又到了叶落归根的时候了。

But I was not ready to go yet. I had business left unfinished in this world. So when the next breeze of autumn air swept past. I held on tight, and became the last leaf on the old oak tree.

可是，我还没有离去的念头。在这个世界上，我还有一些未了的心愿。当秋风再次吹起的时候，我紧紧抓住树干，成了老橡树上最后一片叶子。

I sang for days and nights, so glad I was not yet leaving this world. One morning, I was still cheerfully singing when the old badger walked by, sighing. I called to him, “Mr. Badger, why are you sighing?”

昼去夜来，我不停地唱着，为自己依旧还在这个世界上感到欣慰。一天早晨，正当我兴高采烈地吟唱时，那只上了年纪的老獾从树下经过 一边走着，一边长吁短叹。我叫住了他，问道：“老獾先生，你干嘛唉声叹气呀？”

The badger answered, “My time has come. I must leave this world. Farewell, my little leaf, farewell.”

老獾回答说：“我的时辰到了。我该走了。永别了，小叶子！永别了！”

The old badger took one last look at me. In his eyes, I saw great grief.

老獾最后又看了我一眼。而我在他的目光里，看到了莫大的悲伤。

I was very sad to see the old badger go, but I was still not ready to part the oak tree. So I held on longer.

看着老獾离去的背影，我心里非常惆怅。可是，我依旧没有走的打算。我还要坚持下去。

One peaceful night, I heard footsteps under the tree. I looked down and saw an elephant. She was looking at the stars in the sky, tears rolling out of her bright blue eyes.

在一个十分宁静的夜晚，我听到树下传来了一阵脚步声。低头一瞧，看见了一头大象。她正静静地望着夜空，泪珠从她那明亮的蓝色眼睛里滚落下来。

"Why are you sad, Mrs. Elephant?" I asked.

"Oh, if you only knew, my darling,” she replied in a hoarse voice. “I've grown old and useless. So, you see, I must walk down to the tomb and die.”

“什么事让你这么伤心，象太太？” 我问道。

“哎，你哪里知道啊，亲爱的！” 她的嗓音有点沙哑。“我老了，没用了。所以，你看，我得找个属于自己的地方，该了断了。”

She stared at the stars and cried some more. Then she walked down the night path quietly.

I was so very sad, but, yet again, was not ready to leave.

她两眼直勾勾地望着星空，泪水不断地涌出。接着，沿着夜路，悄悄地走去。

我伤心极了，可是，还想继续留下去。

In the next few days, many creatures died. But every time, I told myself that I couldn't leave! So I stayed there stubbornly for another week until the tree said something to me.

在接下来的日子里，很多生物都陆续离去。可是，每一次，我都告诉自己，不能去！就这样，我依旧呆在树上，十分执着，一呆又是一个星期，直到有一天，老树在我耳边说了些什么。

It was a bright morning. The tree called me to his side, and said, “Little one, I can't keep you any more. I'm sorry, but everything dies in the end. It's how Mother Nature works. Even a tremendous tree like me will die eventually! My core will rot, and then, I will die! So fly with the breeze. May it take you to an ending you please!”

那是一个晴朗的早晨。橡树把我叫到身边，说道：“小家伙，不能再留你了。对不住了，可是，天下万物最终都会有那么一天。这是自然母亲的旨意啊。即便巨大如我，最后也难逃一劫！我的心会烂，我的身会死！去吧，随风去吧。让她带你去你想到的地方！”

I was deeply touched by the tree's words. So I plunged down without hesitating one bit.

大树的话让我深受感动。我毫无犹豫，一头扎了下去。

As I fell to the ground, I thought of my friends and family, and of how they loved me. But, we all shall come to our ends, and I found mine. Therefore, I left no sorrow in this beautiful world.

在我坠落的过程中，我想起了我的家人和朋友，想起了他们对我的热爱。可是，万物固有一死，我找到了自己的归宿。因此，在这个美丽的世界上，我已经没有了任何痛苦。

The snow came quickly, burying my tracks forever.

很快，下雪了，把我的痕迹全部掩埋。

Billy was seven years old.
He liked to do lots of things.
He liked to play with his dog.
He liked to watch television and to read books.
But most of all, he liked to help.
He helped his father and his mother.
He helped his teacher and his neighbors.
He was always looking for somebody to help.
Everybody said, “What a fine helping boy Billy is!”
But one day, everything went wrong.
It was Saturday.
There was no school.
Billy had lots of time to play.
Billy had lots of time to help.
He went into the kitchen.
Mother was baking a cake.
“May I help you, Mother?” asked Billy.
“Not now, dear,” said Mother.
“The cake is almost done. I am whipping the cream for it.”
Just then the telephone rang.
Mother went to answer it.
“I know,” said Billy. “I will finish whipping the cream.”
He whipped and he whipped.
The cream got thicker and thicker.
It began to turn yellow.
Soon Mother came back.
“Oh, Billy,” she cried. “You have whipped the cream too long. It has turned to butter!”
“I am sorry, Mother,” said Billy. “I just wanted to help.”
“I know,” said Mother. “Never mind. I will make a chocolate icing instead. But, please, Billy, go and help somebody else!”
Billy sat and thought.
“I know,” he said. “I will give Tippy a bath. I will surprise Daddy.”
He went into the bathroom.
He put water into the tub.
He put in some of Mother’s bubble bath, too.
Then he went to find Tippy.
Tippy had never liked water very much.
He did not like it all with bubbles.
He jumped from the tub.
He was covered with soapsuds.
He ran down the stairs and into the street.
“Mad dog! Mad dog!” called all the people.
They ran into their houses.
Somebody called a policeman.
When Tippy saw Policeman Bird, he stopped running.
Tippy knew Policeman Bird.
He went to him wagging his tail.
Soon Billy got there.
“What happened to Tippy, Billy?” asked Policeman Bird.
“I was giving him a bath,” said Billy. “Daddy doesn’t like to do it, I just wanted to help.”
“Well,” said Policeman Bird.
“Take Tippy home and wash him off. And, please, Billy, go and help somebody else!”
Billy did as he was told.
Then he sat on the porch and thought.
“I know,” he said. “I will help Mr. Dean next door. He did not finish weeding his garden last night. I will do it for him.”
Soon he was busy in Mr. Dean’s garden.
When Mr. Dean got home, he began to shout.
“Who was in my garden? Who pulled out all the flowers I planted?”
Poor Billy!
He wanted to run and hide.
But he didn’t.
“I did it, Mr. Dean,” he said. “I thought they were weeds. I am sorry. I just wanted to help.”
“I know that you did not mean it, Billy,” said Mr. Dean. “I am sorry I was so angry. But, please, Billy, go and help somebody else!”
Poor Billy!
Everything was going wrong.
And he just wanted to help.
“I know,” he said. “I will go to see Grandma. Maybe I can help her.”
Billy walked down the street to his Grandma’s house.
“Grandma, I have been trying to help people all day. But everything is going wrong.”
“Well, I was just going to clean Joey’s cage, Billy,” said Grandma. “Why don’t you try helping me with that.”
Joey was Grandma’s little parakeet.
Billy loved him.
Joey knew Billy and loved him too.
First Billy took out the tray at the bottom of the cage.
He cleaned it so that it shone.
“There, you did that just fine, Billy,” said Grandma.
Billy was happy.
He thought his bad day was over.
“Would you like a bath now?”
He filled Joey’s little bathtub with nice cool water.
He lifted the cage just a little to move the tub under.
In a flash Joey was out of the cage.
He flew all around the room.
Then he saw an open window.
He flew out.
Grandma was sad.
“Oh, my dear little Joey! I’ll never get him back,” she said.
“Don’t worry, Grandma,” said Billy.
“Everything is going wrong today. But I will make it all right this time. I will get Joey back for you. I have a plan.”
First Billy put the clean tray back in the cage.
Then he took the cage out to the porch.
He sat on the steps beside the cage.
He began to call to Joey.
He said all the things Joey could say.
He said, “Come on! Come over here! Give me a kiss!”
He said, “He’s a good boy! Such a good boy!”
He said these things over and over again.
He rang the little bell in Joey’s cage.
Soon Joey flew out of the tree.
He sat on the fence.
He looked at Billy.
Billy kept talking to him.
Soon Joey answered, “He’s a good boy! Such a good boy!”
Billy held out of his finger.
He called, “Come on, Joey! Come over here! Give me a kiss!”
Joey flew a little closer.
“He’s a good boy! Such a good boy!” he called.
Suddenly he flew to Billy’s finger.
Very slowly Billy put him into his cage.
Joey went right to his seed cup.
What a hungry bird he was!
Billy closed the cage door.
Then he called, “Come, Grandma! Your Joey is back!”
Grandma was so happy!
She hugged Billy over and over.
But soon Billy was on his was again.
Maybe he was looking for somebody to help.

Chapter 3 Fun, Fun, Fun with Miss Small

Miss Small was carrying a basketball, a football, a soccer ball, a kickball, and just about every other kind of ball you could name. She ran out and climbed up on the bleachers. Then she jumped off the bleachers and jumped on one of those little trampolines on the floor.
She did a flip, went flying through the air, and tried to dunk all those balls in the basketball hoop. One or two of them went in, but mostly they went flying all over the place.
So did Miss Small. She landed in a heap on the floor.
Miss Small is off the wall!
“Are you okay?” we all asked as we gathered around her. I was afraid she might have broken something, because she was just lying there without moving.
“I’m fit as a fiddle!” Miss Small replied. “I just wanted to show you how you’re not supposed to behave in the gym. In Fizz Ed, safety is our biggest concern.”
Miss Daisy said she had to go back to class, and she left. Miss Small stood up slowly. It was amazing! Nobody could do anything except stare at her with their mouth open.
“Wow!” we all said.
The amazing thing was that Miss Small was really tall! Like, she was a million inches big. Her head just about reached the basketball hoop. It was like a giant had walked into the room. She must be the tallest person in the history of the world!
Miss Small was the opposite of her name. It was like a fat guy was named Mr. Thin or a dumb guy was named Mr. Smart or a really handsome guy was named Mr. Ugly or . . . well, you get the idea.
Miss Small blew into the shiny silver whistle that was hanging around her neck.
“Hey, kids! Are you ready to have some fun?”
“Yeah!” we all hollered.
“We’re going to have lots of fun in Fizz Ed!” she said. “Fun fun fun, all the time! That’s my motto.”
“What’s a motto?” asked Ryan.
“I don’t know,” Miss Small said. “What’s a motto with you?”
Then she laughed.
“Do you like to play games?” Miss Small asked. “I love playing games!”
“I like to play video games,” one of the boys said.
“Those aren’t the kind of games I’m talking about,” said Miss Small. “Real games are even more fun. I’m talking about running and jumping and chasing games. We’re going to play Red Light Green Light, Red Rover, Spud, Mother May I, Duck Duck Goose. . . .”
“Those games are lame,” Ryan whispered in my ear.
“Kids can get hurt when they run and jump and chase each other,” said Andrea. “My mother told me to always be careful so I don’t get hurt.”
“Can you possibly be any more boring?” I asked Andrea.
She is gonna make a great grown-up when she grows up. She’s only eight, and she’s already mature, which is a fancy way to say boring.
“Do we have to play games where somebody loses?” asked that crybaby Emily. “I think the team that loses should win too. My dad told me I’m a winner whether I win or lose.”
“Your dad is weird,” I said, even though Emily looked like she might cry again. “If everybody wins, what’s the point of playing the game? That’s why you play. To beat the other team.”
“Competing is icky,” said Andrea.
“It doesn’t matter if you win or lose, A.J. It’s how you play the game that counts,” said Miss Small. “In Fizz Ed, our goal is to have fun and build strong, healthy bodies. But most of all, by the end of the term, I want you all to have cooties.”
“Cooties!” everybody shrieked.
“Girls have cooties!” shouted all the boys.
“Boys have cooties!” shouted all the girls.
I never really knew what cooties were, but I knew they were something horrible that you wouldn’t want to get.
“Everybody should have cooties,” said Miss Small. “Cooties stands for COOperation, TEAmwork, and Sportsmanship.”
Oh. I didn’t care much about that stuff. I just wanted to beat Andrea Young at something because she thinks she is so smart. Besides, words that are made from the letters of other words are dumb.
Miss Small blew her whistle again.
“Before we do anything, we have to stretch.”
Miss Small got down on the floor again and did some push-ups. Then we had to do push-ups. She did some sit-ups. Then we had to do sit-ups. She did some wind- mills and arm circles. Then we had to do windmills and arm circles.
“See if you can touch your toes,” Miss Small said. “Now see if you can touch the sky. You want to be loose as a goose in a caboose.”
Stretching was boring, and dumb, too. Nobody can touch the sky. After we stretched, Miss Small made us do about a million hundred jumping jacks.
“Isn’t this fun?” Miss Small asked when we were finished.
I thought I was gonna throw up.
She blew her whistle again.
“Okay, now that we’re all as loose as a goose in a caboose, who wants to play a game?”
“I do!” we all shouted.
Finally!

Chapter 2 Smarty-pants and Dumbhead

“Yippee!” I shouted.
“Hooray!” shouted my friends Ryan and Michael. We all whooped and hollered and high-fived each other. Finally we could go to Fizz Ed and leave all that reading and writing and arithmetic behind for a change. Miss Daisy gave each of us a name tag so Miss Small, the Fizz Ed teacher, would know who we were.
“What’s Fizz Ed?” asked this girl who has red hair named Emily (well, actually the girl is named Emily, not her hair). “Are we going to learn about soda pop?”
Me and Ryan and Michael slapped our own heads. We couldn’t believe it. That was like the stupidest thing anybody ever said in the history of the world.
“Fizz Ed is gym class, dumbhead!” I told Emily. “Everybody knows that.”
Emily looked all upset like she was going to start crying. That girl cries at any old thing.
“A.J.!” Miss Daisy said with her mean face. “Hold your tongue!”
“Okay.”
So I stuck out my tongue and held onto it. Everybody laughed. Well, everybody but Emily and Miss Daisy.
The whole class lined up in size order so Miss Daisy could walk us over to the gym, which is all the way at the other end of the school. Ryan was the line leader.
“I bet Miss Small will let us play football and baseball and hockey and dodgeball,” Michael whispered to me as we walked. Michael and Ryan are really good at sports. They’re the best athletes in the second grade.
“Sports are cool,” I said.
“Except for curling,” said Michael. “That’s just dumb.”
“That’s not even a sport,” I said.
“Curling is what girls do to their hair.” This girl with curly brown hair named Andrea Young must have heard me, because she laughed even though I didn’t say anything funny.
“Curling is too a sport,” she said. “I saw it in a book about the Olympics. They take this big rock and slide it down the ice while somebody sweeps the ice in front of it with a broom.”
Andrea thinks she is so smart. She probably goes home after school and reads the dictionary for fun. That way she can brag about how much she knows.
“You don’t know anything about sports,” I told Andrea.
“Do too,” Andrea said back at me. “I take a dance class every day after school.
I’m learning ballet, jazz, tap, hip-hop, and clog dancing.”
Andrea is one of those kids who takes lessons in everything. All she has to do is sneeze and her mother probably signs her up for sneezing lessons.
“Dancing is not a sport,” I said. “Dancing is dumb.”
“A little less chitchatting in the hall, please,” said Miss Daisy as we walked to the gym.
“Do we really have to go to Fizz Ed, Miss Daisy?” asked Andrea. “Isn’t it more important for us to learn reading, writing, and arithmetic?”
“Strong mind, strong body,” said Miss Daisy.
Ha-ha-ha! Smarty-pants Andrea Young was gonna to have to do something she didn’t like for a change. She wouldn’t be the best in the class for a change. Welcome to my world, Andrea!
I couldn’t wait to beat Andrea at basketball. Beat her at baseball. Beat her at football. This was going to be the greatest day in my life!
Andrea Young probably doesn’t even know the difference between a football and a footprint.
Finally, after walking about a hundred miles, we reached the gym. It’s this giant room with a basketball hoop at each end.
“Miss Small?” called Miss Daisy. “Are you here?”
Nobody answered, but there was an echo in the gym so we could hear Miss Daisy’s words over and over again when they bounced off the walls.
“Miss Small? . . . Miss Small? . . . Miss Small? . . . Miss Small? . . . Are you here?
. . . Are you here? . . . Are you here?”
It was cool.
“Hello!” I yelled.
The gym yelled back, “Hello! . . . Hello! . . . Hello! . . . Hello! . . . Hello!”
“Echo!” yelled Michael.
“Echo . . . echo . . . echo . . . echo,” yelled the gym.
“A.J. is stupid!” yelled Ryan.
“A.J. is stupid! . . . A.J. is stupid! . . . A.J. is stupid! . . . A.J. is stupid!” yelled the gym.
I was gonna yell, “Ryan is a dumbhead,” but instead Miss Daisy yelled, “Stop that, boys!”
“Stop that, boys! . . . Stop that, boys! . . . Stop that, boys!” yelled the gym.
It was cool.
At that very moment, somebody came running out of the office at the other end of the gym. It was the most amazing thing any of us had ever seen.
It was Miss Small.

Ben ripped open his present.
Inside was a penguin
“Hello, Penguin!” said Ben.
“What shall we play?” said Ben.
Penguin said nothing.
“Can’t you talk?” said Ben.
Penguin said nothing.
Ben tickled Penguin.
Penguin didn’t laugh.
Ben pulled his funniest face for Penguin.
Penguin didn’t laugh.
Ben ignored Penguin.
Penguin ignored Ben.
So Ben fired Penguin into outer space.
Penguin came back to Earth without a word.
Ben tried to feed Penguin to a passing lion.
Penguin said nothing.
Lion didn’t want to eat Penguin.
Ben got upset.
Penguin said nothing.
SAY SOMETHING!
Lion ate Ben for being too noisy.
Penguin bit Lion very hard on the nose.
OW! said Lion.
WOW! said Ben.
And Penguin said…
everything!

梅根请求爸爸教她骑自行车。她求爸爸不要松手，因为她还没有准备好。可是，最后，当她终于勇敢地骑车远去的时候，爸爸准备好了吗......

Don’t Let Go

“Teach me to ride and I’ll ride to you,
From Mom’s house over to yours.
Please, will you, Daddy? I need to learn,
And Mom is too busy indoors.
“I tried in the yard, but it’s really so hard;
I bloodies my knee on the wall.
At Grandma’s house the road is too rough,
My wheels won’t stay straight and I’ll fall.”
“Meg, there will always be slippery slopes
And ups and downs and bumps.
There will always be difficult paths to take
And giant steps and humps.
“But the view when you get to the top of the hill,
And the feel of the wind in your hair!
And the freedom to go wherever you please
And to know you can get yourself there…
“That must be worth a few little knocks
And maybe a bruise or two,
But if you’re not ready, we’ll wait a while—
Whatever you want to do.”
“I’ll try in a minute—at least, I might.
I’m getting myself prepared,
Checking my helmet and bicycle bell…
But, Daddy, I’m really scared.”
“Megan, I’m here—
I won’t let go,
Not until you say.
Hold on tight. I love you, so
We’ll do this together, okay?”
“I think I’m ready
to go now, Dad.
Daddy, don’t let go!
Don’t…
Okay,
you can let go now!
“Bye, Daddeeee…you’re so slow!
“Look at me, Daddy! I can ride!
See? I can ride my bike.
Now I can go wherever I want,
To the end of the world if I like!”
“Megan, it’s difficult letting go.
I was scared too today—
Scared you would never come back to me
Now that you can ride away.”
“Daddy, I’m here. I won’t let go,
Not until you say.
Hold on tight. I love you, so
We’ll do this together, okay?”

The Stray Dog

It was a great day for a picnic.
“What’s this?” asked the father.
“It’s a scruffy little dog,” said the mother.
“He looks hungry,” said the girl.
“I think he wants to play,” said the boy.
The children played with him and taught him to sit up.
They named him Willy.
They kept playing until it was time to go.
“Let’s take Willy home,” said the children.
“No,” said the father.
“He must belong to somebody,” explained the mother,” and they would miss him.”
On the way home the girl said, “Maybe Willy doesn’t belong to anybody.”
During the week all the family had Willy on their minds.
“Willy!” they all cried when he appeared.
But Willy didn’t stop.
Willy was in a big hurry.
“He has no collar. He has no leash,” said the dog warden. “This dog is a stray. He doesn’t belong to anybody.”
The boy took off his belt.
“Here’s his collar,” he said.
The girl took off her hair ribbon.
“Here’s his leash,” she said. “His name is Willy, and he belongs to us.”
They took Willy home.
And after that…
they introduced him to the neighborhood, where he met some very interesting dogs.
And Willy settled in where he belonged.