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Christmas was just a week away and I had five people left to shop for on my Christ－mas list and only three dollars to my name.How do you tell your mother, brother and three friends that you can only spend sixty cents on each of them?
“Let’s set a price limit on our gifts this year.” I suggested to my best friend, Joanie.
“That’s a good idea.” Joanie agreed.“How about nothing over five dollars?”
“How about nothing over sixty cents?” I felt like the biggest cheapskate2 in the world.
“I guess this is what I’m supposed to say： it’s not the gift, it’s the thought that counts,” Joanie smiled, “but don’t blame me if all you get is a stick of gum!”
It is almost impossible to buy anything for under sixty cents, so it was really going to have to be very small gifts with very big thoughts.I’d never spent so much time or efforts trying to come up with the right gift for the right person.
Finally, Christmas day arrived, and I was wor－ried how people would feel about my “cheap” gifts. I gave my mother a scented3 candle with a note that said, “You are the brightest light in my life.”She almost cried when she read the note.
I gave my brother a wooden ruler.On the back of it I’d painted, “No brother in the world could measure up to you.” He gave me a bag of sugar and had written on it, “You’re sweet.”He’d never said anything like that to me before.
For Joanie, I painted an old pair of shoes gold and stuck dried flowers in them with a note that said, “No one could ever fill your shoes.”She gave me a feather and a Band-Aid. She said I always tickled4 her funny bone and made her laugh until her sides ached.
To my other two friends, I gave one a paper fan and wrote on it, “I’m your biggest fan.”To the other, I gave a calculator5 that cost one dollar and I painted a message on the back, “You can always count on me.”They gave me a rusty horseshoe for luck and a bundle of sticks tied with a red ribbon be－cause “friends stick together”.
I don’t remember all the other gifts that I got from people last Christmas, but I remember every one of the “cheap” gifts.
My brother thinks I’m sweet.My mother knows she is the most important person in my life.Joanie thinks I’m funny and I make her laugh, which is important because her dad moved away last year and she misses him and is sad sometimes.
I was worried I wouldn’t have enough money for Christmas gifts, but I gave gifts to five people and still had twenty cents left over.We all still talk about our “cheap” gifts and how much fun it was to come up with a gift that cost pennies but told some－one how we really felt about them.On my book－shelf, I still have a bag of sugar, a feather, a horse－shoe and a bundle of sticks... and they are priceless.
距离圣诞节只有一个星期了，在我赠送圣诞礼物的名单上，还有五个人的礼物没有买，而我只剩下三美元了。可是，你怎么能够告诉你的母亲、哥哥和你的三个朋友，你只能为他们每人购买60美分的礼物？
“今年，让我们对礼物做一个价格约定吧。”我向我最好的朋友乔妮建议道。
“这真是一个好主意。”乔妮赞同道。“不超过五美元怎么样？” “不超过60美分怎么样？”我觉得自己好像是这个世界上最吝啬的小气鬼。
“我想这正是我要说的。礼轻情义重嘛，”乔妮微笑着说，“不过，如果你收到的只是一片口香糖，可不要责备我！”
用不到60美分的钱购买一份礼物谈何容易，这几乎是不可能的，因此，也的确可以算得上是“礼轻情义重”了。我以前从来没有花费过这么多的心思和努力去为别人购买一份合适的礼物。
终于，圣诞节那一天来到了，我很担心，不知道人们会对我的“廉价”礼物做何感想。
我把一枝能散发出香气的蜡烛送给了妈妈，并在上面贴了一张字条，写着“你是我生命中最明亮的光”。她在读字条的时候差点儿哭了。
我送给哥哥一把木头尺子。在尺子后面用彩笔写着，“世上没有一个哥哥能够与你相比。”他送给我一包糖果，并在上面写着：“你真可爱。”在此之前，他从来没有对我说过这样亲昵的话。
我把一双旧鞋子染成了金色，并在里面塞了一些干花和一张写着“没有人能够代替你”的字条，送给了乔妮。而她送给我的则是一根羽毛和一条创可贴。她说我总是逗得她发笑，直到笑痛肚子。
我送给另外两个朋友的礼物，一个是一把纸扇，上面写着“我是你最忠实的崇拜者”，另一个是价值1美元的计算器。我在计算器的背面用彩笔写着，“你可以永远依靠我。”她们送给我的则是一枚锈迹斑斑的象征幸运的马蹄铁和一把用一条红丝带扎着的象征“朋友团结在一起”的小木棍儿。
去年圣诞节收到的其他礼物，我并不都记得，但却记得每一件“廉价”的小礼物。
哥哥认为我可爱。母亲知道她是我生命中最重要的人。乔妮认为我这个人有趣，能逗得她笑，这一点很重要，因为她爸爸去年离开了家，她很想念他，有时候难免会感到很悲伤。
我本来担心自己没有足够的钱购买圣诞礼物，但是，在送给了五个人礼物之后，我还剩下20多美分。我们仍旧经常谈论那些“廉价”的小礼物，而送出一件只值几十美分的礼物并且告诉接受它的人他们对我们多么重要，这是多么有趣啊。在我的书架上，至今仍然放着一包糖果、一根羽毛、一块马蹄铁和一把小木棍儿……而且，它们都是无价之宝。
飞鸢 摘译自Holiday Stories
“Let’s set a price limit on our gifts this year.” I suggested to my best friend, Joanie.
“That’s a good idea.” Joanie agreed.“How about nothing over five dollars?”
“How about nothing over sixty cents?” I felt like the biggest cheapskate2 in the world.
“I guess this is what I’m supposed to say： it’s not the gift, it’s the thought that counts,” Joanie smiled, “but don’t blame me if all you get is a stick of gum!”
It is almost impossible to buy anything for under sixty cents, so it was really going to have to be very small gifts with very big thoughts.I’d never spent so much time or efforts trying to come up with the right gift for the right person.
Finally, Christmas day arrived, and I was wor－ried how people would feel about my “cheap” gifts. I gave my mother a scented3 candle with a note that said, “You are the brightest light in my life.”She almost cried when she read the note.
I gave my brother a wooden ruler.On the back of it I’d painted, “No brother in the world could measure up to you.” He gave me a bag of sugar and had written on it, “You’re sweet.”He’d never said anything like that to me before.
For Joanie, I painted an old pair of shoes gold and stuck dried flowers in them with a note that said, “No one could ever fill your shoes.”She gave me a feather and a Band-Aid. She said I always tickled4 her funny bone and made her laugh until her sides ached.
To my other two friends, I gave one a paper fan and wrote on it, “I’m your biggest fan.”To the other, I gave a calculator5 that cost one dollar and I painted a message on the back, “You can always count on me.”They gave me a rusty horseshoe for luck and a bundle of sticks tied with a red ribbon be－cause “friends stick together”.
I don’t remember all the other gifts that I got from people last Christmas, but I remember every one of the “cheap” gifts.
My brother thinks I’m sweet.My mother knows she is the most important person in my life.Joanie thinks I’m funny and I make her laugh, which is important because her dad moved away last year and she misses him and is sad sometimes.
I was worried I wouldn’t have enough money for Christmas gifts, but I gave gifts to five people and still had twenty cents left over.We all still talk about our “cheap” gifts and how much fun it was to come up with a gift that cost pennies but told some－one how we really felt about them.On my book－shelf, I still have a bag of sugar, a feather, a horse－shoe and a bundle of sticks... and they are priceless.
距离圣诞节只有一个星期了，在我赠送圣诞礼物的名单上，还有五个人的礼物没有买，而我只剩下三美元了。可是，你怎么能够告诉你的母亲、哥哥和你的三个朋友，你只能为他们每人购买60美分的礼物？
“今年，让我们对礼物做一个价格约定吧。”我向我最好的朋友乔妮建议道。
“这真是一个好主意。”乔妮赞同道。“不超过五美元怎么样？” “不超过60美分怎么样？”我觉得自己好像是这个世界上最吝啬的小气鬼。
“我想这正是我要说的。礼轻情义重嘛，”乔妮微笑着说，“不过，如果你收到的只是一片口香糖，可不要责备我！”
用不到60美分的钱购买一份礼物谈何容易，这几乎是不可能的，因此，也的确可以算得上是“礼轻情义重”了。我以前从来没有花费过这么多的心思和努力去为别人购买一份合适的礼物。
终于，圣诞节那一天来到了，我很担心，不知道人们会对我的“廉价”礼物做何感想。
我把一枝能散发出香气的蜡烛送给了妈妈，并在上面贴了一张字条，写着“你是我生命中最明亮的光”。她在读字条的时候差点儿哭了。
我送给哥哥一把木头尺子。在尺子后面用彩笔写着，“世上没有一个哥哥能够与你相比。”他送给我一包糖果，并在上面写着：“你真可爱。”在此之前，他从来没有对我说过这样亲昵的话。
我把一双旧鞋子染成了金色，并在里面塞了一些干花和一张写着“没有人能够代替你”的字条，送给了乔妮。而她送给我的则是一根羽毛和一条创可贴。她说我总是逗得她发笑，直到笑痛肚子。
我送给另外两个朋友的礼物，一个是一把纸扇，上面写着“我是你最忠实的崇拜者”，另一个是价值1美元的计算器。我在计算器的背面用彩笔写着，“你可以永远依靠我。”她们送给我的则是一枚锈迹斑斑的象征幸运的马蹄铁和一把用一条红丝带扎着的象征“朋友团结在一起”的小木棍儿。
去年圣诞节收到的其他礼物，我并不都记得，但却记得每一件“廉价”的小礼物。
哥哥认为我可爱。母亲知道她是我生命中最重要的人。乔妮认为我这个人有趣，能逗得她笑，这一点很重要，因为她爸爸去年离开了家，她很想念他，有时候难免会感到很悲伤。
我本来担心自己没有足够的钱购买圣诞礼物，但是，在送给了五个人礼物之后，我还剩下20多美分。我们仍旧经常谈论那些“廉价”的小礼物，而送出一件只值几十美分的礼物并且告诉接受它的人他们对我们多么重要，这是多么有趣啊。在我的书架上，至今仍然放着一包糖果、一根羽毛、一块马蹄铁和一把小木棍儿……而且，它们都是无价之宝。
飞鸢 摘译自Holiday Stories