THE NEW LEAVES

“Wake up!” said a clear little voice. Tommy woke, and sat up in bed. At the foot of the bed stood a boy about his own age, all dressed in white, like fresh snow. He had very bright eyes, and he looked straight at Tommy.

“Who are you?” asked Tommy.

“I am the New Year!” said the boy. “This is my day, and I have brought you your leaves.”

“What leaves?” asked Tommy.

“The new ones, to be sure!” said the New Year. “I hear bad accounts¹ of you from my Daddy—”

“Who is your Daddy?” asked Tommy.

“The Old Year, of course!” said the boy. “He said you asked too many questions and I see he was right. He says you are greedy², too, and that you sometimes pinch³ your little sister, and that[11] one day you threw your reader into the fire. Now, all this must stop.”

“Oh, must it?” said Tommy. He felt frightened, and did not know just what to say.

The boy nodded⁴. “If it does not stop,” he said, “you will grow worse and worse every year, till you grow up into a Horrid⁵ Man. Do you want to be a Horrid Man?”

“N-no!” said Tommy.

“Then you must stop being⁶ a horrid boy!” said the New Year. “Take your leaves!” and he held out a packet⁷ of what looked like copy-book leaves, all sparkling⁸ white, like his own clothes.

“Turn over one of these every day,” he said, “and soon you will be a good boy instead of a horrid one.”

Tommy took the leaves and looked at them. On each leaf a few words were written. On one it said, “Help your mother!” On another, “Don’t pull the cat’s tail!” On another, “Don’t eat so[12] much!” And on still another, “Don’t fight Billy Jenkins!”

“Oh!” cried Tommy. “I have to fight Billy Jenkins! He said—”

“Good-by!” said the New Year. “I shall⁹ come again when I am old to see whether you have been a good boy or a horrid one. Remember,

“Horrid boy makes horrid man;
You alone can change the plan.”

He turned away and opened the window. A cold wind blew in and swept the leaves out of Tommy’s hand. “Stop! stop!” he cried.[13] “Tell me—” But the New Year was gone, and Tommy, staring¹⁰ after him, saw only his mother coming into the room. “Dear child!” she said. “Why, the wind is blowing everything about.”

“My leaves! My leaves!” cried Tommy; and jumping out of bed he looked all over the room, but he could not find one.

“Never mind,” said Tommy. “I can turn them just the same, and I mean to. I will not grow into a Horrid Man.” And he didn’t.

1 accounts   

n.往来帐目

参考例句：

• Contemporary accounts attest to his courage and determination. 当时的报道证实了他的勇气和决心。
• They confused me with conflicting accounts of what happened. 他们对发生的事所作的陈述自相矛盾，使我迷惑不解。

2 greedy   

adj.贪吃的；贪婪的；渴望的

参考例句：

• He was not greedy with his money.他不贪他的钱。
• She is a greedy girl.她是个贪心的女孩。

3 pinch   

n.捏，撮，困苦，偷窃；vt.掐，使...困苦，偷窃

参考例句：

• She would pinch on food in order to spend on clothing.她过去常把伙食费省下来买衣服。
• He put a pinch of salt on his food.他在自己的食物上撒了一撮盐。

4 nodded   

v.点头( nod的过去式和过去分词 )；打盹；打瞌睡；点头致意

参考例句：

• He nodded absently, his attention absorbed by the screen. 他专心注视着屏幕，只是心不在焉地点了点头。
• She nodded her head in agreement. 她点头表示同意。

5 horrid   

adj.可怕的；令人惊恐的；恐怖的；极讨厌的

参考例句：

• I'm not going to the horrid dinner party.我不打算去参加这次讨厌的宴会。
• The medicine is horrid and she couldn't get it down.这种药很难吃，她咽不下去。

6 being   

n.存在；生存；生命存在，生命，人， 本质；art.在，有，是

参考例句：

• Can you explain to me the purpose of being?你能对我解释一下存在的目的吗？
• What is the purpose of our being?我们生存的目的是什么？

7 packet   

n.小包，小盒；包裹；v.打包，装行李；包装

参考例句：

• The shopkeeper reached for a packet of tea.店主伸手去取一包茶叶。
• Please follow the instructions on the packet when you take the drug.吃药时请按照包装上的说明去服用。

8 sparkling   

adj.发火花的，闪亮的；灿烂的，活泼的；闪闪发光的，闪烁的；起泡沫的v.闪光，闪耀(sparkle的现在分词)

参考例句：

• the calm and sparkling waters of the lake 平静的波光粼粼的湖水
• Other sparkling wines are often considered the poor relations of champagne. 其他起泡的葡萄酒通常被认为较香槟酒为次。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 shall   

v.aux.（主要用于第一人称）将

参考例句：

• I shall always love you.我将永远爱你。
• Which club shall we join?我们要参加哪个社团？

10 staring   

adj.目不转睛的；凝视的；显眼的；（毛发）竖立的v.凝视，瞪视( stare的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• She lay on her back staring up at the ceiling. 她仰卧着凝视天花板。
• She was staring into space, her mouth slack. 她双唇微张，失神地望着前方。