Because of Winn-Dixie (VI) 傻狗温迪克（六）

Kate Dicamillo

你吃过一种叫“里德莫斯·洛丹”的糖果吗？它吃起来有点像草汁还有点像草莓，还有一种主人公欧宝说不出来的味道，一种令人觉得伤心的味道，它是世界上少见的会把甜蜜和悲伤融在一起的糖果。

“Well， Littmus came home from the war，”said Miss Franny as she went on with her story， “and found himself alone. And he sat down on what used to be the front step of his house， and he cried and cried. He cried just like a baby. He missed his mama and he missed his daddy and he missed his sisters and he missed the boy he used to be. When he finally finished crying， he had the strangest 1）sensation. He felt like he wanted something sweet. He wanted a piece of 2）candy. He hadn't had a piece of candy in years. And it was right then that he made a decision. Yes ma'am. Littmus W. Block figured the world was a sorry affair and that it had enough 3）ugly things in it and what he was going to do was concentrate on putting something sweet in it. He got up and started walking. He walked all the way to Florida. And the whole time he was walking， he was planning.”

1） sensation [senˈseɪʃn] n.感覺;感觉能力

2） candy [ˈkændi] n.糖果

3） ugly [ˈʌɡli] adj.丑陋的;难看的

“Planning what？”I asked.

“Why， planning the candy factory.”

“Did he build it？”I asked.

“Of course he did. It's still standing out on Fairville Road.”

“That old building？”said Amanda. “That big 4）spooky one？”

“It is not spooky，”said Miss Franny. “It was the birthplace of the family fortune. It was there that my great-grandfather 5）manufactured the Littmus Lozenge， a candy that was famous the world over.”

4） spooky [ˈspuːki] adj.幽灵般的;令人毛骨悚然的

5） manufacture [ˌmænjuˈfæktʃə（r）] v.生产;制造

“里德莫斯从战场回来，”芬妮小姐继续讲故事，“发现只剩下他一个人时，他坐在以前是家门口台阶的地方，像个婴儿一样一直哭一直哭。他思念他的妈妈，思念他的爸爸，思念他的姐妹，思念从前的一切。等他哭完了，他有一种很奇特的感觉，那就是他想要吃一点甜的东西，他想吃一块糖。他有好几年没吃糖了。是那种感觉，没错！于是，他做了个决定。里德莫斯·布莱克这时终于了解到整个世界是一个大悲剧，世界已经充满了丑陋，现在他想要做的事是替世界加一点甜美的事物。他站起来，重新出发，一直走到佛罗里达州。他一边走一边计划着。”

“计划什么？”我问。

“哦，计划盖一家糖果工厂。”

“他真的盖了吗？”我又问。

“当然盖了，现在还坐落在费尔路上。”

“就是那栋老建筑物？”阿曼达说，“那间阴森森的大房子？”

“那栋房子才不阴森呢。”芬妮小姐说，“那是我家事业的发源地。我曾祖父就是在那儿发明了‘里德莫斯·洛丹’——世界有名的糖果。”