When Valancy had lived for a week at Roaring Abel’s she felt as if years had separated her from her old life and all the people she had known in it. They were beginning to seem remote—dream-like—far-away—and as the days went on they seemed still more so, until they ceased to matter altogether.

 

She was happy. Nobody ever bothered her with conundrums¹ or insisted on giving her Purple Pills. Nobody called her Doss or worried her about catching² cold. There were no quilts to piece, no abominable³ rubber-plant to water, no ice-cold maternal⁴ tantrums to endure. She could be alone whenever she liked, go to bed when she liked, sneeze when she liked. In the long, wondrous⁵, northern twilights, when Cissy was asleep and Roaring Abel away, she could sit for hours on the shaky back verandah steps, looking out over the barrens to the hills beyond, covered with their fine, purple bloom, listening to the friendly wind singing wild, sweet melodies in the little spruces, and drinking in the aroma⁶ of the sunned grasses, until darkness flowed over the landscape like a cool, welcome wave.

 

Sometimes of an afternoon, when Cissy was strong enough, the two girls went into the barrens and looked at the wood-flowers. But they did not pick any. Valancy had read to Cissy the gospel thereof according to John Foster: “It is a pity to gather wood-flowers. They lose half their witchery away from the green and the flicker⁷. The way to enjoy wood-flowers is to track them down to their remote haunts—gloat over them—and then leave them with backward glances, taking with us only the beguiling⁸ memory of their grace and fragrance9

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1 conundrums
n.谜，猜不透的难题，难答的问题( conundrum的名词复数 )
参考例句：
After all the conundrums of Hungary, the second Turkish Grand Prix promises much. 继匈牙利站所有猜不透的事之后，第二届土耳其大奖赛许诺了太多。 来自互联网 I see conundrums, dilemmas, quandaries, impasses, gnarly thickets of fateful possibility with no obvious way out. 眼看问题经纬万端，进退两难、入困境，死路一条，盘根错节的命定可能性，但找不到明显的出路。 来自互联网

2 catching
adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住
参考例句：
There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。 Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。

3 abominable
adj.可厌的，令人憎恶的
参考例句：
Their cruel treatment of prisoners was abominable.他们虐待犯人的做法令人厌恶。 The sanitary conditions in this restaurant are abominable.这家饭馆的卫生状况糟透了。

4 maternal
adj.母亲的，母亲般的，母系的，母方的
参考例句：
He is my maternal uncle.他是我舅舅。 The sight of the hopeless little boy aroused her maternal instincts.那个绝望的小男孩的模样唤起了她的母性。

5 wondrous
adj.令人惊奇的，奇妙的；adv.惊人地；异乎寻常地；令人惊叹地
参考例句：
The internal structure of the Department is wondrous to behold.看一下国务院的内部结构是很有意思的。 We were driven across this wondrous vast land of lakes and forests.我们乘车穿越这片有着湖泊及森林的广袤而神奇的土地。

6 aroma
n.香气，芬芳，芳香
参考例句：
The whole house was filled with the aroma of coffee.满屋子都是咖啡的香味。 The air was heavy with the aroma of the paddy fields.稻花飘香。

7 flicker
vi./n.闪烁，摇曳，闪现
参考例句：
There was a flicker of lights coming from the abandoned house.这所废弃的房屋中有灯光闪烁。 At first,the flame may be a small flicker,barely shining.开始时，光辉可能是微弱地忽隐忽现，几乎并不灿烂。

8 beguiling
adj.欺骗的，诱人的v.欺骗( beguile的现在分词 )；使陶醉；使高兴；消磨（时间等）
参考例句：
Her beauty was beguiling. 她美得迷人。 His date was curvaceously beguiling. 他约会是用来欺骗女性的。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 fragrance
n.芬芳，香味，香气
参考例句：
The apple blossoms filled the air with their fragrance.苹果花使空气充满香味。 The fragrance of lavender filled the room.房间里充满了薰衣草的香味。

10 interfere
v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰
参考例句：
If we interfere, it may do more harm than good.如果我们干预的话，可能弊多利少。 When others interfere in the affair,it always makes troubles. 别人一卷入这一事件，棘手的事情就来了。

11 dismal
adj.阴沉的，凄凉的，令人忧郁的，差劲的
参考例句：
That is a rather dismal melody.那是一支相当忧郁的歌曲。 My prospects of returning to a suitable job are dismal.我重新找到一个合适的工作岗位的希望很渺茫。

12 meek
adj.温顺的，逆来顺受的
参考例句：
He expects his wife to be meek and submissive.他期望妻子温顺而且听他摆布。 The little girl is as meek as a lamb.那个小姑娘像羔羊一般温顺。

13 determinedly
adv.决意地；坚决地，坚定地
参考例句：
"Don't shove me,'said one of the strikers, determinedly. "I'm not doing anything." “别推我，"其中的一个罢工工人坚决地说，"我可没干什么。” 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹 Dorothy's chin set determinedly as she looked calmly at him. 多萝西平静地看着他，下巴绷得紧紧的，看来是打定主意了。 来自名作英译部分

14 consign
vt.寄售（货品），托运，交托，委托
参考例句：
We cannot agree to consign the goods.我们不同意寄售此货。 We will consign the goods to him by express.我们将以快递把货物寄给他。

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