第45章 鯨魚與蝴蝶

一天黃昏，一個男子和一個婦女不期而遇地同坐一輛驛站馬車旅行。他們以前見過面。 那男子是個詩人，他坐在那婦女的身邊，設法講故事給她消遣，有的故事是他自己創作的，有的可不是。 然而，就在他講著故事的時候，那位夫人竟睡著了。接著，馬車突然晃蕩，那位夫人醒了，她說："我真欣賞你所描摹的約拿和鯨魚的故事。" 詩人接口道："然而，夫人，我剛才在講給你聽的故事是我自己創作的，說的是一隻蝴蝶和一朵白玫瑰花，以及它們怎樣的彼此以禮相待。" The Whale And The Butterfly Once on an evening a man and a woman found themselves together in a stagecoach. They had met before.

The man was a poet, and as he sat beside the woman he sought to amuse her with stories, some that were of his own weaving, and some that were not his own. But even while he was speaking the lady went to sleep. Then suddenly the coach lurched, and she awoke, and she said, "I admire your interpretation of the story of Jonah and the whale."

And the poet said, "But Madame, I have been telling you a story of mine own about a butterfly and a white rose, and how they behaved the one to the other!"