拇指姑娘｜Thumbelina

原著作者｜汉斯·克里斯汀·安徒生 An old woman had lived alone for many long years. She planted a single grain of wheat and watered it every day. The grain sprouted and bloomed into a beautiful flower. In the center of the petals lay a tiny girl no bigger than a thumb. The old woman bent down softly and said, "I shall call you Thumbelina". One starry night a toad hopped by. It caught sight of the little girl resting on the petal. "What beauty," it thought, "she would make a perfect bride for my son". Gently the toad lifted the petal with the girl still lying on it. It carried the petal and jumped into a pond, sinking deep below. Thumbelina woke to find water everywhere around her. The toad guarded the jar lid and said to its son, "This is your bride". It covered the jar with a great lotus leaf. The leaf's edge rested on the water but left only a tiny gap. Thumbelina stretched her arm high but could not reach the leaf. Fish came swimming by and heard her crying. One fish said, "She should not be locked up in here". Another fish opened wide and bit into the lotus stem. It bit for a very long time until the stem nearly broke. The jar loosened and tilted to one side. A thin layer of ice formed and froze the stem in place. The toad felt cold and went to find another place to stay. Thumbelina curled in the corner of the jar waiting for the ice to melt. One day the ice cracked open. A swallow flew over the pond. It was so cold that it paced on the ice to warm its feet. The swallow looked down and saw the open jar. It flew inside and landed on the bottom of the jar. Thumbelina looked up softly and asked, "Who are you"?. The swallow flapped its wings and answered, "I am just passing by". Thumbelina reached out her hand and said, "Please take me with you". The swallow lowered its head and let her climb onto its back. The swallow carried her flying over the fields. Thumbelina trembled all over from the cold wind. She grew weaker and weaker and could not hold on any longer. The swallow landed at the edge of a field. It gently set Thumbelina down on a single grain of wheat. The swallow said, "I can only bring you this far". Then it flew away and vanished into the sky. Thumbelina lay on the wheat grain, cold and hungry and all alone. A field mouse came out from its burrow one day. It spotted Thumbelina and picked her up in its little hands. The mouse carried her into its warm cozy burrow. It gave her a seed to eat and said, "Have something first". Thumbelina ate it all up and felt much better. The mouse had been living alone for a very long time. It was lonely and its house was dark and quiet. Thumbelina sang songs for it and wove cloth for it. Listening to the songs the mouse's eyes grew bright. It said, "Stay here, I need you". Thumbelina nodded and decided to stay. Winter came and snow covered everything. Thumbelina sat by the window gazing outside. She thought of the pond and the swallow and the fields she had flown over. She let out a sigh and quietly planted a flower seed by the windowsill. The long cold winter finally passed away. Spring arrived and sunlight poured into the burrow. Thumbelina stepped out of the mouse's house. She came to the windowsill and stood there stunned. The seed had sprouted and grown into a flower. The flower was bigger than any other, its petals glowing with soft light. The petals slowly opened and standing inside was a Flower Prince. He wore a golden crown on his head and a robe of green leaves down to his feet. The Flower Prince looked at Thumbelina and reached out his hand. He said, "I have waited for so long, and now you are here at last". Thumbelina did not speak, she simply took his hand. The Flower Prince led her flying far away. They flew over forests and over the wide sea. At last they landed on a small island covered in flowers. There were no toads, no ice, no winter at all. Thumbelina stood among the blossoms and lifted her head. The sunlight fell on her face and the wind blew softly. She smiled and tears of joy rolled down her cheeks. She was finally free.前往小宇宙评论区与主播互动