登陆注册
15732300000001

第1章

The Shadow of Change "Harvest is ended and summer is gone," quoted Anne Shirley, gazing across the shorn fields dreamily. She and Diana Barry had been picking apples in the Green Gables orchard, but were now resting from their labors in a sunny corner, where airy fleets of thistledown drifted by on the wings of a wind that was still summer-sweet with the incense of ferns in the Haunted Wood.

But everything in the landscape around them spoke of autumn.

The sea was roaring hollowly in the distance, the fields were bare and sere, scarfed with golden rod, the brook valley below Green Gables overflowed with asters of ethereal purple, and the Lake of Shining Waters was blue -- blue -- blue; not the changeful blue of spring, nor the pale azure of summer, but a clear, steadfast, serene blue, as if the water were past all moods and tenses of emotion and had settled down to a tranquility unbroken by fickle dreams.

"It has been a nice summer," said Diana, twisting the new ring on her left hand with a smile. "And Miss Lavendar's wedding seemed to come as a sort of crown to it. I suppose Mr. and Mrs. Irving are on the Pacific coast now.""It seems to me they have been gone long enough to go around the world,"sighed Anne.

"I can't believe it is only a week since they were married.

Everything has changed. Miss Lavendar and Mr. and Mrs. Allan gone -- how lonely the manse looks with the shutters all closed!

I went past it last night, and it made me feel as if everybody in it had died.""We'll never get another minister as nice as Mr. Allan," said Diana, with gloomy conviction. "I suppose we'll have all kinds of supplies this winter, and half the Sundays no preaching at all. And you and Gilbert gone -- it will be awfully dull.""Fred will be here," insinuated Anne slyly.

"When is Mrs. Lynde going to move up?" asked Diana, as if she had not heard Anne's remark.

"Tomorrow. I'm glad she's coming -- but it will be another change.

Marilla and I cleared everything out of the spare room yesterday.

Do you know, I hated to do it? Of course, it was silly -- but it did seem as if we were committing sacrilege. That old spare room has always seemed like a shrine to me. When I was a child I thought it the most wonderful apartment in the world. You remember what a consuming desire I had to sleep in a spare room bed -- but not the Green Gables spare room. Oh, no, never there!

It would have been too terrible -- I couldn't have slept a wink from awe. I never WALKED through that room when Marilla sent me in on an errand -- no, indeed, I tiptoed through it and held my breath, as if I were in church, and felt relieved when I got out of it.

The pictures of George Whitefield and the Duke of Wellington hung there, one on each side of the mirror, and frowned so sternly at me all the time I was in, especially if I dared peep in the mirror, which was the only one in the house that didn't twist my face a little.

I always wondered how Marilla dared houseclean that room. And now it's not only cleaned but stripped bare. George Whitefield and the Duke have been relegated to the upstairs hall. `So passes the glory of this world,' " concluded Anne, with a laugh in which there was a little note of regret. It is never pleasant to have our old shrines desecrated, even when we have outgrown them.

"I'll be so lonesome when you go," moaned Diana for the hundredth time.

"And to think you go next week!"

"But we're together still," said Anne cheerily. "We mustn't let next week rob us of this week's joy. I hate the thought of going myself -- home and I are such good friends. Talk of being lonesome!

It's I who should groan. YOU'LL be here with any number of your old friends -- AND Fred! While I shall be alone among strangers, not knowing a soul!""EXCEPT Gilbert -- AND Charlie Sloane," said Diana, imitating Anne's italics and slyness.

"Charlie Sloane will be a great comfort, of course," agreed Anne sarcastically; whereupon both those irresponsible damsels laughed.

Diana knew exactly what Anne thought of Charlie Sloane; but, despite sundry confidential talks, she did not know just what Anne thought of Gilbert Blythe. To be sure, Anne herself did not know that.

"The boys may be boarding at the other end of Kingsport, for all I know," Anne went on. "I am glad I'm going to Redmond, and I am sure I shall like it after a while. But for the first few weeks I know I won't. I shan't even have the comfort of looking forward to the weekend visit home, as I had when I went to Queen's.

Christmas will seem like a thousand years away.""Everything is changing -- or going to change," said Diana sadly.

"I have a feeling that things will never be the same again, Anne.""We have come to a parting of the ways, I suppose," said Anne thoughtfully. "We had to come to it. Do you think, Diana, that being grown-up is really as nice as we used to imagine it would be when we were children?""I don't know -- there are SOME nice things about it," answered Diana, again caressing her ring with that little smile which always had the effect of making Anne feel suddenly left out and inexperienced. "But there are so many puzzling things, too.

同类推荐
  • 施公案

    施公案

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 上清佩符文诀

    上清佩符文诀

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 水浒古本

    水浒古本

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 尚论篇

    尚论篇

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 萍洲可谈

    萍洲可谈

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
热门推荐
  • 福妻驾到

    福妻驾到

    现代饭店彪悍老板娘魂穿古代。不分是非的极品婆婆?三年未归生死不明的丈夫?心狠手辣的阴毒亲戚?贪婪而好色的地主老财?吃上顿没下顿的贫困宭境?不怕不怕,神仙相助,一技在手,天下我有!且看现代张悦娘,如何身带福气玩转古代,开面馆、收小弟、左纳财富,右傍美男,共绘幸福生活大好蓝图!!!!快本新书《天媒地聘》已经上架开始销售,只要3.99元即可将整本书抱回家,你还等什么哪,赶紧点击下面的直通车,享受乐乐精心为您准备的美食盛宴吧!)
  • 霸宠

    霸宠

    她为父母,为天下,为一草一木,唯独忘了他。他霸道,腹黑,谁又知道他迷人眼眸下的无奈。她爱他,爱得情真意切,爱得不能自已,爱得自己都不知道何时他已经重过万水千山,超过父母恩情。她以为他懂,他仍在苦苦追求她心底最重要的位置。两个深爱着,两个迷茫着,直到他那一头朔雪般的白发,在月光下莹莹发光,记忆全无,她才明白她爱他,但爱得太少,又爱的太浅。于是她不顾一切,无视天道去追寻那一抹清冷,可是,他,怎舍得?
  • 恒虐

    恒虐

    虐人者,人恒虐之。经过地狱的洗礼,是从深渊爬出的恶魔?亦或是蜕茧化蝶,光明重临人间?!他能否在黑白之间明悟自己未来的道路,亦或是沉浸在永恒的欲望之中,不愿醒来?都市刑侦类小说,请跟随作者的脚步,一起见证主角的成长。
  • 异能之恋

    异能之恋

    关于韩星的恋爱,EXO为主。请大家多多欢看。欢迎唯12观看,但也欢迎唯11,唯10观看。
  • 十年韶华倾城恋

    十年韶华倾城恋

    她是当今圣上亲口册封的冷面郡主,他是武艺高强身份尊贵的墨王陛下。通过一次聚会,相识,相遇,相知,相伴,后来他们终于在一起了,但由于一次意外她十年的守候却全都负尽,一个人十年的青春难道是能等的吗?玉佩已碎,玉琴已毁,从此你我,形同陌路……
  • 樱花散落十七岁

    樱花散落十七岁

    人说,十七岁都是生命中最美好的花季。樱花散落的街道上我还记得那个约定。而这个十七岁,我要让它注定不平凡,要让它成为我们生命中最美好的一场邂逅……
  • 花都寻梦

    花都寻梦

    陈子君聪明美丽又懂事,身边的人都知道。可是大家都不知道,她拗得很、死倔,说得好听点,那叫执著,说得难得点,就是认死理,死磕。认定了读书才会有出息,再苦再难硬是不舍得放弃;喜欢上了一个人,就看不见全天下人的好了。
  • 骷髅戮

    骷髅戮

    风灭残烛,寒烟侵目,伶俜漂泊中蓦然忘了归途。迷茫的双眼看向前路,辉冥苦笑两声,昨日之事散尽若烟尘,唯有父母临死前可怖的表情日日断肠,他不记得是什么让他一夜之间家破人亡,他也不知道自己为什么会走到了京都,他甚至觉得自己快忘了自己——他的记忆在一天一天流失。直到他邂逅了昕蓉,这个美丽的女孩子让他一度沉迷,一度逃避了自己。他以为他可以忘记一切,他痴心地曾构想未来······福兮祸之所倚,危险在逼近,他不知道,他的身体里,生长着另一个自己······
  • 今年我28岁

    今年我28岁

    我是追着90的尾巴出生的女孩,本该努力的我却不爱学习,所以成绩中低;本该活力的我不爱运动,所以体力差劲;本该奋斗的我却没有野心,所以成家立业无迹可寻……
  • 反童仙

    反童仙

    古有一仙,唤之龙娿。其掌管无尽灵气,维持世间生命繁衍生息。三百年前,龙娿为凡间世人之疾苦所动容。凡人属龙娿掌管生灵之一,因身不具灵气,又无大能,受魔界魔物影响,民不聊生,一片荒凉。龙娿倍感惋惜,遂打通凡人零灵脉,使之通灵,得以修炼,乃至成仙。天帝得知,大怒,将其贬为身无灵脉的凡人少年,任其在凡间自生自灭......