茶杯的自白

从前有对夫妇经常去英国一间漂亮的商店里买东西。他们俩都喜欢古董和陶器，尤其喜爱茶杯。今年是他们结婚二十五周年纪念。

有一天，这对夫妇在这家漂亮的商店里看到了一个精美的茶杯，便问道：“我们可以看看那个茶杯吗？我们还没见过这么漂亮的茶杯呢。”女店员把茶杯递给他们。就在这时，这个茶杯竟然开口说起话来。

“你们可不知道，”它说。“起初我并不是一个茶杯。有一段时间我曾经只是红色的黏土。造我的陶匠拿起我，把我卷起来，一次又一次地拍打我，直到把我折腾得喊了出来：‘别折磨我了！可他只是笑了笑，说：‘还没好呢。”

“然后我被放到了一个转轮上，突然我就旋转起来了，一圈又一圈。‘停下！我头都晕了！我尖叫起来。但工匠只是点点头，说：‘还没好呢。”

“后来他把我放进烤炉里。我还从来没经受过那样的高温。真不明白他为什么要用火烧我。我大叫大嚷，不断拍打炉子的门。从炉门的缝隙里我能看见他，我能从他的唇形读出他正一边摇头一边说：‘还没好呢。”

“最后门终于开了，他把我放到架子上，让我冷却。‘哎，这回好多了。我说。随后陶匠用笔刷为我全身都上了釉彩。那股气味实在是太可怕了，我觉得自己马上就要窒息了。‘停下！住手！我又喊了起来。而他只是点点头，说：‘还没好呢。”

“突然，他又把我放进烤炉里，但这次可不像第一次那样，这里的温度是第一次的两倍，我知道我会窒息而死。于是我又是哀求，又是恳请，又哭又叫。可我一直都能从炉口看见他点着头说：‘还没好呢。”

“我知道没有希望了，这关我是熬不过去了，我已经准备放弃。这时炉门打开了，他把我取出来，放到架子上。一个小时后，他递给我一面镜子，说：‘看看自己吧。我便朝镜子里看。我说：‘那不是我。那不可能是我！太美了！我竟然这么美！”

“‘我想你记住，陶匠说，‘我知道揉你拍你会使你疼痛，但要是我不管你，你就会变干变硬。我知道在转轮上旋转会让你头晕目眩，但要是我不这么做，你就会溃散得不成样子。我知道让你在烤炉里烧，你会觉得很辛苦，很热很难受，但要是我不把你放进去，你就会爆裂。我也知道在给你全身上釉彩时的气味很难闻，但要是我没有那么做，你永远不会变硬，你的生命也永远不会有光彩。而假如我不把你再次放回到烤炉里，你的生命就会因为硬度不够而夭折。现在你终于是一件成品了，就如同我一开始打造你时心中所想象的一样美。”

There was a couple who used to go to England to shop in the beautiful stores. They both liked antiques1 and pottery and especially teacups. This was their twenty-fifth wedding anniversary2.

One day in this beautiful shop they saw a beautiful teacup. They said， “May we see that？ Weve never seen one quite so beautiful.” As the lady handed it to them， suddenly the teacup spoke.

“You dont understand，” it said. “I havent always been a teacup. There was a time when I was red and I was clay. My master took me and rolled me and patted me over and over and I yelled out 3， ‘Let me alone. But he only smiled， ‘Not yet.”

“Then I was placed on a spinning wheel4， and suddenly I was spun5 around and around and around. ‘Stop it！ Im getting dizzy6！ I screamed. But the master only nodded and said， ‘Not yet.”

“Then he put me in the oven. I never felt such heat. I wondered why he wanted to burn me， and I yelled and knocked at the door. I could see him through the opening and I could read his lips as he shook his head， ‘Not yet.”

“Finally the door opened， he put me on the shelf， and I began to cool. ‘There， thats better， I said. And he brushed and painted me all over. The fumes7 were horrible. I thought I would gag8. ‘Stop it！ Stop it！ I cried. He only nodded， ‘Not yet.”

“Then suddenly he put me back into the oven， not like the first one. This was twice as hot and I knew I would suffocate9. I begged. I pleaded10. I screamed. I cried. All the time I could see him through the opening nodding his head saying， ‘Not yet.”

“Then I knew there wasnt any hope. I would never make it. I was ready to give up. But the door opened and he took me out and placed me on the shelf. One hour later he handed me a mirror and said， ‘Look at yourself. And I did. I said， ‘Thats not me. That couldnt be me. Its beautiful. Im beautiful！”

“‘I want you to remember then， he said， ‘I know it hurts to be rolled and patted， but if I had left you alone， youd have dried up. I know it made you dizzy to spin around on the wheel， but if I had stopped， you would have crumbled11. I knew it hurt and was hot and disagreeable12 in the oven， but if I hadnt put you there， you would have cracked. I know the fumes were bad when I brushed and painted you all over， but if I hadnt done that， you never would have hardened； you would not have had any color in your life. And if I hadnt put you back in that second oven， you wouldnt survive13 for very long because the hardness would not have held. Now you are a finished product. You are what I had in mind when I first began with you.”

·注释

1、antique n.古物，古董

2、anniversary n.周年纪念

3、yell out 呼喊

4、spinning wheel 纺车

5、spin v.旋转

6、dizzy a.晕眩的，昏乱的

7、fume n.（浓烈或难闻的）烟，气体

8、gag v.窒息，作呕

9、suffocate v.被闷死，窒息

10、plead v.恳求

11、crumble v.弄碎，粉碎

12、disagreeable a.不愉快的，厌恶的

13、survive v.幸存，生还