一年有四季，岁月有寒暑，似乎再正常不过，虽然偶尔也会惊叹时光的流逝，却从未认真体会季节的变迁，直到某一天恍然大悟，原来四季早已融入了我们的生命。
只有经历了春的生机盎然，才能有秋的累累硕果；若非体会过冬的肃静萧杀，怎会怀念夏的激情澎湃？假如自然没有四季，生活何其苍白，感受不到任何细微的变迁，只能茫然地度过相似的每一天。
而人生亦如四季。童年的记忆繁花似锦，甜美如三月的春风；年轻的世界生命绽放，火热如六月的流云；成熟的生命宁静悠闲，馥郁如十月的瓜果；而垂老的暮年平淡满足，洁白如飘扬的雪花。
虽然光阴如流水匆匆而去，流不走的却是那永恒的美丽。幸好，我们还拥有四季……
——小狐
文字难度：★★★☆
春日的启示 Spring
——Excerpt of Walden, or Life in the Woods
Henry David Thoreau
The first sparrow of spring! The year beginning with younger hope than ever! The faint silvery 1)warblings heard over the partially bare and moist fields from the 2)bluebird, the 3)song sparrow, and the 4)redwing, as if the last flakes of winter tinkled as they fell! What at such a time are histories, chronologies, traditions, and all written revelations? The brooks sing carols and glees to the spring. The 5)marsh hawk, sailing low over the meadow, is already seeking the first slimy life that awakes. The sinking sound of melting snow is heard in all 6)dells, and the ice dissolves apace in the ponds. The grass flames up on the hillsides like a spring fire, as if the earth sent forth an inward heat to greet the returning sun; not yellow but green is the color of its flame—the symbol of perpetual youth, the grass-blade, like a long green ribbon, streams from the sod into the summer, checked indeed by the frost, but 7)anon pushing on again, lifting its spear of last year’s hay with the fresh life below. It grows as steadily as the rill oozes out of the ground. It is almost identical with that, for in the growing days of June, when the rills are dry, the grass-blades are their channels, and from year to year the herds drink at this 8)perennial green stream, and the mower draws from it 9)betimes their winter supply. So our human life but dies down to its root, and still puts forth its green blade to eternity.
春天里的第一只麻雀来了！新的一年充满了更新的希望！知更鸟、歌雀、红翼鸫在部分光秃而潮湿的田野里轻吟出银铃般的旋律，犹如冬天最后的雪花簌簌地飘向大地。在这样的时刻，一切的历史、年表、传统以及启示录，和我们又有何关系呢？小溪也在对着春天尽情歌唱欢乐颂歌。泽鹰在草地上低旋，已经在寻觅刚刚苏醒的小生命。山谷里处处可闻融雪的沉坠声；湖泊里的冰雪大片大片地融化。山坡上的小草就像春天的火焰般蓬勃生长，如同大地释放出了心中的热情，迎接回归的太阳。这火焰不是黄色的，而是绿色的——那是永不褪色的青春的象征。那嫩绿的草叶宛如一条长长的绿色缎带，从泥土中飘然而出融入夏天，虽然几经霜打，但仍然勇往直前，从去年枯萎的干草下冒出新芽，如溪流从地里潺潺流出。几乎每年在万物蓬勃生长的六月里，溪流全都干枯之时，是小草保存了生命之水。年复一年，牛羊从这绿色的常青之河中汲取水分，牧人也依赖它为牛羊过冬做准备。即使人类的生命消失殆尽，大地依然会长出这翠绿的草叶，无穷无尽直至永恒。
As every season seems best to us in its turn, so the coming in of spring is like the creation of Cosmos out of Chaos and the realization of the Golden Age.
似乎每一次季节的转换都会让我们兴奋不已。春天的来临犹如混沌初开，寰宇重现，预示着黄金时期的到来。
夏日的狂暴 Summer
——Excerpt of Glories of the Storm
Nancy M. Peterson
The first drops of rain are huge. They splat into the dust and imprint the windows with the individual signatures. They plink on the 10)vent pipe and plunk on the 11)patio roof. Leaves shudder under their weight before rebounding, and the sidewalk wears a coat of shiny spots.
The rhythm accelerates; plink follows plunk faster and faster until the sound is a roll of drums and the individual drops become an army marching over fields and rooftops. Now the first bolt of lightning stabs the earth. It is heaven’s exclamation point. The storm is here!
The rain now becomes a 12)torrent, flung 13)capriciously by a rising wind. Together they batter the trees and level the grasses. Water streams off roofs and out of rain spouts. It pounds against the window in such a steady wash that I am sightless. There is only water. How can so much fall so fast? How could the clouds have supported this vast weight? How can the earth endure beneath it?
Pacing through the house from window to window, I am moved to open-mouthed wonder. Look how the 14)lilac bends under the assault, how the 15)day lilies are flattened, how the hillside steps are a new-made waterfall! Now 16)hailstones thump upon the roof. They pounce white against the grass and splash into the puddles. I think of the vegetable garden, the fruit trees, the crops in the fields; but, thankfully, the hailstones are not enough in numbers or size to do real damage. Not this time.
第一阵雨意来势汹汹。它们碎裂于尘埃之上，在玻璃窗上印满了点点斑痕。雨点把通风管敲得叮咚作响，将露台顶打得噼噼啪啪。树叶被砸得瑟瑟发抖，难以抬头；而人行道则披上了一层熠熠闪光的外衣。
雨点的节奏加快了，叮咚噼啪声越来越密集，一阵紧似一阵，连成了一片急促的鼓点，颗颗雨滴也汇集成了一支行进于田野和屋顶上的大军。刹那间，第一道闪电犹如上天画下的惊叹号，狠狠地刺向了大地。暴风雨来了！
这时，大雨倾盆如注，奔流不息，狂风将雨水抛洒得飘摇不定。风雨交加，恣意地抽打着树木，将草坪夷为平地。雨水从屋顶上一泻而下，漫出了排水管。它一刻不停地泼洒在窗户上，让我什么都看不清了，眼前只有水。这么多的雨水怎能下得这么急促？这么巨大的重量云层怎能承受得住？这样猛烈的冲击大地又怎能经受得起？
我在房间里从一个窗口踱到另一个窗口，屋外的景象使我瞠目结舌，惊叹不已。瞧，在暴风雨的袭击下，丁香花折弯了腰，萱草倒伏于地，山坡上的石阶小道变成了一帘新辟的瀑布！这时突然下起冰雹来，乒乒乓乓地砸在屋顶上，顷刻间草地上银珠纷飞，水洼里水花四溅。我开始担心起园里的蔬菜、果树，还有田里的庄稼；不过，幸好冰雹的数量不算多，个头也不算大，还不足以造成什么重大的损失，至少这次是不会的了。
秋日的静美 Autumn
Author Unknown
Autumn is easily my favorite time of the year. The days have cooled down, the leaves have turned yellow, and the world is busy preparing herself for winter. There’s something magical about the clear 17)brisk days, the first smell of the wood stove or the fireplace, the first frost, the canning of the late fruits and vegetables, the pumpkin and 18)cider stands on the roadways.
秋季自然而然成为一年中我最喜欢的季节。天气渐渐凉爽，树叶慢慢变黄，整个世界都在忙着准备过冬。这秋高气爽的日子有着某种神秘的魔力：柴火炉或壁炉里飘出的第一丝香味，深秋时节的第一场霜冻，晚熟的水果和蔬菜加工成的罐头，还有路边堆满的南瓜和苹果酒。
There is a harmony in autumn, and a 19)luster in its sky, which through the summer is not heard or seen. Fallen leaves lying on the grass in the November sun bring more happiness than the daffodils. School has started, and there’s newness in the air. Even though the season is the 20)precursor to winter, somehow, the world knows that winter is necessary, and the long preparation for the cold of winter—the preparation that is autumn—is a beautiful, necessary part of the world.
秋天有一种和谐的美，天空中绽放出夏日里未曾听闻或见过的绚丽色彩。落叶在十一月阳光下撒满了草地，给人们带来的愉悦连水仙花都无法比拟。学校也开学了，空气中弥漫着清新的气息。虽说秋季是冬季的前奏，但不知何故，整个世界都明白冬季必然到来，因而为这寒冷的日子做着漫长准备。秋季便是这准备时期，也是这世界美丽而必要的一部分。
Autumn truly is what summer pretends to be: the best of all seasons. It is as glorious as summer is tedious; as subtle as summer is obvious; as refreshing as summer is wearying. Autumn seems like paradise.
夏天佯装自己是一年中最好的季节，其实秋日才是最美。如果说夏季是单调的，那么秋季就是绚烂的；如果说夏季是浅薄的，那么秋季就是含蓄的；如果说夏季是困乏的，那么秋季就是清爽的。秋日，宛如天堂。
冬日的凝思 Winter
——Excerpt of a Winter Walk
Henry David Thoreau
We sleep, and at length awake to the still reality of a winter morning. The snow lies warm as cotton or down upon the windowsill; the broadened 21)sash and frosted panes admit a dim and private light, which enhances the 22)snug cheer within. The stillness of the morning is impressive. The floor creaks under our feet as we move toward the window to look abroad through some clear space over the fields. We see the roofs stand under their snow burden. From the eaves and fences hang 23)stalactites of snow, and in the yard stand 24)stalagmites covering some concealed core. The trees and shrubs rear white arms to the sky on every side; and where were walls and fences, we see fantastic forms stretching in 25)frolic gambols across the dusky landscape, as if Nature had strewn her fresh designs over the fields by night as models for man’s art.
我们进入了梦乡，等到醒来时，恰是冬季宁静的早晨。雪像棉花一般柔软，厚厚地铺满了窗棂。窗格子显得宽了些，玻璃上也爬满了冰纹，暗淡而神秘的微光透窗而入，使家里变得更加温馨而舒适。早晨的寂静触动人心。我们踏着吱吱作响的地板来到窗前，透过尚未结冰的玻璃一角，眺望田野风景。屋顶被层层白雪覆盖着，屋檐下和篱笆上挂着根根冰柱；院子里竖立着石笋一样的雪柱，里面是否藏着什么，就无从知晓了。树木和灌木向四面八方伸展着它们白色的枝干；在原来是墙壁和篱笆的地方，我们还看到了一些更加奇妙的形态，它们肆意延伸着，像在昏暗的大地上嬉戏欢跃。仿佛只是一夜工夫，大自然就重新设计了一幅田园美景，供人类的艺术家来临摹。
Though winter is represented in the 26)almanac as an old man, facing the wind and 27)sleet, and drawing his cloak about him, we rather think of him as a merry woodchopper, and warm-blooded youth, as 28)blithe as summer. In winter we lead a more inward life. Our hearts are warm and cheery, like cottages under drifts, whose windows and doors are half concealed, but from whose chimneys the smoke cheerfully ascends. The imprisoning drifts increase the sense of comfort which the house affords, and in the coldest days we are content to sit over the 29)hearth and see the sky through the chimney-top, enjoying the quiet and serene life that may be had in a warm corner by the chimney-side, or feeling our pulse by listening to the low of cattle in the street, or the sound of the 30)flail in distant barns all the long afternoon. We enjoy now, not an Oriental, but a 31)Boreal leisure, around warm stoves and fireplaces, and watch the shadow of 32)motes in the sunbeams.
尽管在普通的年历里，冬天总是以老人的形象出现，身上裹着紧紧的大衣，直面风雪。但我们却认为，冬天应该是一个快乐的樵夫，或一个热血的青年，像夏天一样欢欣雀跃。在冬天，我们会更多地去探索自己的内心世界。我们的心温暖而喜悦，就像大雪覆盖的农舍：虽然门窗半掩，但从烟囱里冒出的烟却在快乐地向上升腾。房屋本来就给人以舒适的感觉，在大雪纷飞的日子里，呆在屋内会感到更加的温馨。在最冷的时候，我们围在壁炉边取暖，透过烟囱顶看着外面的天空，在烟囱边温暖的一角享受着宁静而安详的人生，或倾听街上牛羊的沉吟和远处谷仓里整个下午都没有停歇的打谷声，甚至能感觉到自己脉搏的跳动。我们享受着此时此刻，这不是东方式的悠闲，而是北方式的安逸。大家就这样围坐在温暖的火炉和壁炉边，凝视着尘埃的影子在光束中飞舞。
