strawberry          believed（believe）          acquainted（acquaint）

草莓              相信（過去式）            熟悉（過去式）

modest             warning（warn）              glisten

謙遜              警告（現(xiàn)在分詞）             閃亮

traveler               advice                    noticed（notice）

旅行者                建議                     注意（過去式）

cousin               foxglove                    crimson

表親                 毛地黃                    深紅色的

1. In a damp, green spot in the midst of a wood, hidden away from the light by a number of ferns, there grew a little white strawberryblossom.

2. Its many broad leaves only made it look smaller and paler. The tall foxgloves and ferns growing around it hardly ever noticed the pale little thing. “It seems scarcely worth while,” they would say, “to have so many leaves for so small a flower.”

3. When she heard remarks of this kind, the little blossom felt sad. “I wonder why I grow at all,” she thought, “It is very dark and lonely, and nobody loves me.”

4. One day a child came and gathered an armful of fresh, green ferns, and then, at last, a bright sunbeam found its way in. It lighted on the head of the tiny white flower, making it glisten like a dewdrop.

5. “I love you, little Strawberryblossom, I love you,” whispered the sunbeam; but the little flower had lived so long without being noticed, that she scarcely believed this.

6. “Not me, kind sunbeam,” she said，“surely not me; it must be the foxglove, the queen of the woods, with its crimson bells, or the lovely wild rose climbing by.”

7. “No, little Strawberryblossom,” said the sunbeam; “it is you that I love. You are so gentle and modest that I had hard work to find you; but now I shall come often, and stay with you part of every day.”

8. When the other plants saw the sunbeam talking to little Strawberryblossom, they laughed at her. But she was too happy to care for that.

9. So all through the long, hot summer day, the sunbeam stayed with her, and when he said “Good night,” he promised to come again the next morning.

10. That night a glowworm passing by stopped to speak to her. “Oh, glowworm，”said she, “I am so happy! A sunbeam has come, and he says he loves me, though I am such a tiny flower; and he is coming again tomorrow!”

11. “Hum！” said the glowworm, who had seen a good deal of life; “dont be too sure of that. The sunbeam is a great traveler, and is not always to be depended upon.”

12. “But he told me he would come soon,” said Strawberryblossom; “and he is so good, I am sure he will keep his word.”

13. “Well,” said the glowworm, “I do not know much about him; I am better acquainted with his cousins, the moonbeams. I only give you a word of friendly warning. My advice is to go to sleep and forget all about him. Goodnight.”