落花生

許地山

At the back of our house there was half a mu of vacant land. “Its a pity to let it go to waste like that，” Mother said. “Since you all enjoy eating peanuts， let us open it up and make it a peanut garden.” At that my brother， sister and I were all delighted and so were the young housemaids. Some went to buy seeds， some dug the ground and others watered it and， in a couple of months， we had a harvest！

“Let us have a party tonight to celebrate，” Mother suggested， “and ask Dad to come for a taste of our fresh peanuts. What do you say？” We all agreed， of course. Mother cooked the peanuts in different styles and told us to go to the thatched pavilion in the garden for the celebration.

The weather was not very good that night but， to our great delight， Dad came all the same. “Do you like peanuts？” Dad asked.

“Yes！” we all answered eagerly.

“But who ran tell me what the peanut is good for？”

“It is very delicious to eat，” my sister took the lead.

“It is good for making cooking oil，” my brother followed.

“It is inexpensive.” I said. “Almost everyone can afford it and everyone enjoys eating it. I think this is what it is good for.”

“Peanut is good for many things，” Dad said， “but there is one thing that is particularly good about it. Unlike apples， peaches or pomegranates that display their fruits up in the air， attracting you with their beautiful colours， peanut buries its fruit in the earth. It does not show itself until you dig it out when it is ripe and， unless you dig it out， you cant tell whether it bears fruit or not just by its frail sterns above ground.”

“Thats true，” we all said and Mother nodded her assent. “So you should try to be like the peanut，” Dad went on， “because it is useful， though not great or attractive.”

“Do you mean，” I asked， “we should learn to be useful but not seek to be great or attractive？”

“Yes，” Dad said. “It is what I wish you to be.”

We stayed up late that night， eating all the peanuts Mother had cooked for us. But Fathers words remained vivid in my memory till this day.

我們屋后有半畝隙地。母親說：“讓它荒蕪著怪可惜，既然你們那么愛吃花生，就開辟來作花生園吧。”我們幾姊弟和幾個小丫頭都很喜歡——買種的買種，動土的動土，灌園的灌園;過不了幾個月，居然收獲了！

媽媽說：“今晚我們可以做一個收獲節，也請你們爹爹來嘗嘗我們的新花生，如何？”我們都答應了。母親把花生做成好幾樣食品，還吩咐這節期要在園里的茅亭舉行。

那晚上的天色不大好，可是爹爹也到來，實在很難得！爹爹說：“你們愛吃花生嗎？”

我們都爭著答應：“愛！”

“誰能把花生的好處說出來？”

姊姊說：“花生的氣味很美。”

哥哥說：“花生可以制油。”

我說：“無論何等人都可以用賤價買它來吃;都喜歡吃它。這就是它的好處。”

爹爹說：“花生的用處固然很多;但有一樣是很可貴的。這小小的豆不像那好看的蘋果、桃子、石榴，把它們的果實懸在枝上，鮮紅嫩綠的顏色，令人一望而發生羨慕的心。它只把果子埋在地底，等到成熟，才容人把它挖出來。你們偶然看見一棵花生瑟縮地長在地上，不能立刻辨出它有沒有果實，非得等到你接觸它才能知道。”

我們都說：“是的。”母親也點點頭。爹爹接下去說：“所以你們要像花生，因為它是有用的，不是偉大、好看的東西。”

我說：“那么，人要做有用的人，不要做偉大、體面的人了。”爹爹說：“這是我對于你們的希望。”

我們談到夜闌才散，所有花生食品雖然沒有了，然而父親的話現在還印在我心版上。

Vocabulary

vacant adj. 空缺的，閑置的

pomegranate n. 石榴

assent? n. 同意;贊成

vivid adj. 生動的;逼真的