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一个女孩终日疾病缠身，看上去随时会离开人世。隔壁住着一个寡妇，年岁大了，背也驼了。每当她看到女孩，都会难过地摇摇头说:"哦，上帝，你为什么要折磨这个可怜的孩子……如果你想要一条命，就让我这个老太婆去吧！” 一天晚上，村子里一头公牛把头伸进一个大黑罐子里去吃罐底的粮食，头拔不出来了。牛受了惊吓，头上套着罐子又看不清方向，慌乱中到处乱跑。 这时，我们上面提到的那位寡妇正在邻居家聊.天。她又开始摇头说，如果上帝想要一条命，应该让她去。忽然她看到一个强壮的无头怪兽向她冲过来。 "阎罗王索命来了！”她想到这里,惊恐万分。 "救命啊，上帝，救命啊!"她尖叫着跪倒在公牛前，“饶了我吧，隔壁有个病恹恹的女孩，要索命的话你去找她吧！” Change of Mind There was a sickly young girl who always seemed to be at death * s door. Her neighbor was a widow, bent with age. Whenever she caught sight of the girl she would shake her head sadly and say： "Oh God, why do you torment that poor child... if you want a life take this old woman!" One evening a bull in the village，put its head into a large black pot to get at some grain at the bottom, and then couldn’t get its head out. Frightened and confused, it ran hither and thither, unable to see where it was going because its eyes were covered by the pot. Meanwhile, the old woman we mentioned, was visiting her neighbor. She as usual began shaking her head and saying that if God wanted a life he should take hers. Suddenly she became aware that a powerfully-built beast, apparently headless, was rushing at her. “Yama has come for me!" she thought and was filled with terror. "Mercy, my Lord, mercy!" she screeched, falling to her knees in front of the advancing bull. Spare me. There5 s a sickly girl next door. Take her instead!” |
