The Stories of “Spring” “春天”的故事

by Anna Matteo 景一

When the weather outdoors gets warmer， flowers appear and birds become more active. Spring has sprung！

Sometimes these changes in nature seem to happen overnight. You go to bed， and the next morning you awake to a new world—one that is greener and more colorful.

The same can be said for expressions that use the word “spring”. English speakers use them to describe things that happen quickly and without much warning.

Now， one of the fastest growing things in nature is the mushroom. One day mushrooms are nowhere to be found and the next day there is a whole crop of them！

So， when something happens suddenly and often over a large area， we can say it springs up like mushrooms1.

Here is one way to use this expression. After videos about making cupcakes became popular online， stores specializing in cupcakes “sprang up like mushrooms” all over town.

Now， some people like mushrooms. And some people dont. Not to worry！ You can drop the “mushroom” and simply say， “spring up2”. For example， when the large company set up shop in the small town， new houses sprang up seemingly overnight.

We often use the term “to spring3” to describe anything that happens without warning. So， if I spring something on you4， I tell you with no warning.

Many people do not like to have important news sprung on them. They want time to prepare themselves. For example， “You cant just spring something like that on me！ We need to talk about it first！”

If someone springs big news on you without warning， the news comes to you from out of the blue5. When people break news to you this way， it can leave you speechless at first.

If you have an important announcement or big news， you need to prepare the person. You might say something like， “I have to tell you something” or， “Do you have a minute？” or simply， “I have news！” and then share the information. This is a way of breaking big news with a warning.

Recently， a good friend of mine told me she was getting married. But she did not even tell me that she was in a relationship！ She must have realized how surprised I was. So， she apologized for springing her happy news on me out of the blue like that.

Now， her happy news is private. So， she can share it with others or not share it， however she likes. But what if the news involves other people？ That is when springing it on someone is a bit more complex.

Lets say two people， Tara and Sam， own a business together. The company is called Tara & Sams Roof Repair. They had been building their company for a few years and were finally starting to make money. Then one day， Tara sprang big news on Sam. She was moving to Alaska ... in a week！ She wanted to be out of the business.

Sam was not prepared for any of this. A few weeks earlier， they had made plans for growing their client base. He asked， “A week？ How can you spring this news on me？ We are supposed to be partners！ Ive spent time away from my family to build this business！”

Sam was shocked and angry. But then he saw an opportunity. He asked his son to join the company. They renamed it Sam & Sons Roof Repair and soon their business was doing even better than before. And they were able to spend more time together.

The next time you have big news to share， remember not to spring it on someone—well， unless you want them to be shocked.

當室外的天气变暖时，花儿就会绽放，鸟类也会变得更加活跃。春天来了！

有时这些自然变化似乎是一夜之间发生的。你上床睡觉，第二天早上醒来，就发现了一个新的世界——一个更绿、更多彩的世界。

使用“春天”这个词的表达方式也是一样的意思。说英语的人用这些表达方式来描述那些发生得很快、没有太多预兆的事情。

既然自然界生长得最快的东西之一是蘑菇，那么第一天，哪儿都没有蘑菇，第二天就长满了蘑菇！

所以，当某件事情突然发生，并且通常发生在一个较大的范围，我们可以说它像蘑菇一样冒出来。

下面是使用这个表达的方法之一。在制作纸杯蛋糕的视频风靡网络之后，专门做纸杯蛋糕的商店“如雨后春笋般”遍布全城。

既然有些人喜欢蘑菇，那么有些人就会不喜欢。别担心！你可以把“蘑菇”放下，简单地说，“涌现”。例如，当大公司在小镇上开店时，新房子似乎在一夜之间涌现出来。

我们经常用“冷不防地”这个说法来形容任何毫无征兆的事情。所以，如果我冷不防地告诉你什么，指的是我会出其不意地告诉你。

许多人不喜欢突然有重要的消息传来。他们想有时间做好准备。例如，“你不能就这样突然跟我说！我们得先谈谈这事儿！”

如果有人毫无预兆地向你透露重大消息，那么这个消息就是突然传来的。当人们用这种方式向你透露消息时，一开始会让你哑口无言。

如果你有一个重要的公告或重大新闻，你得让人做好准备。你可能会说“我得告诉你一些事儿”，或者“你有空吗？”，或者干脆说 “我有个消息！”，然后分享信息。这是一种带预告的透露大新闻的方式。

最近，我的一个好朋友告诉我她要结婚了。但她甚至没有告诉我她在谈恋爱！她肯定意识到我有多惊讶了。所以，她为自己突然把这个意外的好消息告诉我而道歉。

既然她的喜讯是私人的，她就可以和别人分享或者不与别人分享，随她喜欢。但如果新闻与其他人有关怎么办？那个时候突然告诉其他人情况就有会更复杂了。

比如说有两个人，塔拉和萨姆，共同拥有一家企业。这家公司叫做塔拉和萨姆屋顶修理公司。几年了，他们一直在建设公司，并且终于要开始赚钱了。然后有一天，塔拉突然对萨姆说了个大消息。她要搬到阿拉斯加去……在一周内！她想退出。

萨姆没有做好面对这些的任何准备。几周前，他们已经制定了扩大客户群的计划。他质问说：“一个星期？你怎么能突然告诉我这样的消息？我们应该是搭档！我已经花了很多时间，不顾我的家人，去建立了这家公司！”

萨姆既震惊又愤怒。但后来他看到了一个机会。他请儿子加入公司。他们把公司改名为山姆父子的屋顶修理公司，很快，他们的生意就比以前更好了。并且他们可以有更长的时间待在一起。

下次你有重大消息要分享时，记住不要很突然地告诉别人——好吧，除非你是想让他们感到震惊。

（英语原文选自：VOA Special English）

【Notes】

1. spring up like mushrooms 雨后春笋般地涌现

2. spring up 出现;涌现

3. to spring 突然提出

4. spring something on sb. 突然向某人说出某事

5. out of the blue 突然地;意外地