Lesson 16　Bird Friends　第16课　与鸟儿为友

wife greet beard worms prayers

faith grove crusts church furnished

I once knew a man who was rich in his love for birds, and in their love for him. He lived in the midst of a grove full of all kinds of trees.He had no wife or children in his home.

He was an old man with gray beard, blue and kind eyes, and a voice that the birds loved；and this was the way he made them his friends.

While he was at work with a rake on his nice walks in the grove, the birds came close to him to pick up the worms in the fresh earth he dug up. At frst, they kept a rod or two from him, but they soon found he was a kind man, and would not hurt them, but liked to have them near him.

They knew this by his kind eyes and voice, which tell what is in the heart. So, day by day their faith in his love grew in them.

They came close to the rake. They would hop on top of it to be frst at the worm.They would turn up their eyes into his when he spoke to them, as if they said，"He is a kind man；he loves us；we need not fear him."

All the birds of the grove were soon his fast friends. They were on the watch for him, and would fly down from the green tree tops to greet him with their chirp.

When he had no work on the walks to do with his rake or his hoe, he took crusts of bread with him, and dropped the crumbs on the ground. Down they would dart on his head and feet to catch them as they fell from his hand.

He showed me how they loved him. He put a crust of bread in his mouth, with one end of it out of his lips.Down they came like bees at a fower, and few off with it crumb by crumb.

When they thought he slept too long in the morning, they would fly in and sit on the bedpost, and call him up with their chirp.

They went with him to church, and while he said his prayers and sang his hymns in it, they sat in the trees, and sang their praises to the same good God who cares for them as he does for us.

Thus the love and trust of birds were a joy to him all his life long；and such love and trust no boy or girl can fail to win with the same kind heart, voice, and eye that he had.

Adapted from Elihu Burritt

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曾经，我知道有这样一个人。他热爱鸟儿，鸟儿也爱他。他住在一片树林中，周围生长着各种各样的树。他没有妻子和孩子，孤家寡人一个。

他年纪大了，留着灰白的胡须，眼睛是蓝色的，充满友善，还拥有鸟儿都喜欢的声音。因为他的这些特点，鸟儿们就成了他的朋友。

当他悠闲地在林中散步，带着草耙去干活的时候，鸟儿们就在他身边飞来飞去，它们会啄起老人从清新的泥土里翻出的小虫。一开始，鸟儿会和老人保持一定的距离，但是它们很快就发现他是一个好人，不会伤害自己，而且也喜欢自己在他周围飞翔。

它们是通过老人和蔼的眼神和声音知道这一点的。他的眼神和声音可以述说内心的想法。所以，随着日子一天天过去，它们对他的爱也与日俱增。

它们飞向草耙。它们会跳到草耙的顶端，第一个吃到小虫子。当老人和它们说话时，它们也会望着他的眼睛，好像在说：“他是好人，他喜欢我们，我们没必要害怕他。”

很快，林中所有的鸟儿都成了他忠实的朋友。它们守望着他，也会从树顶飞下来，用它们叽叽喳喳的叫声向他问好。

当他不用草耙和锄头干活的时候，他就随身带着干面包片，把面包屑撒在地上。面包屑一离手，鸟儿们就猛地飞向他的头和脚来接住。

他向我展示了鸟儿是多么爱他。他把一块面包放在自己的嘴上，留着一小截在嘴唇外面。它们像蜜蜂飞向花朵那样扑了过来，衔着面包屑飞走了。

如果鸟儿认为他早上睡得太久了，它们就会飞进房间，立在床柱上，用它们悦耳的鸣叫声唤他起床。

它们跟着他去教堂，当他祷告、唱赞美诗的时候，它们也停留在树上，歌颂关心它们的上帝，就像上帝关照我们一样。

因此，在他的一生中，鸟儿的爱和信任对他来说是一种乐趣；对男孩和女孩们来说，只要拥有像老人一样的好心、声音和眼神，他们也能得到这样的爱和信任。

以利户·伯里特