English Original
A good friend of mine, Miriam, was preparing for a long fall trip. The day before her departure, I called to wish her well, only to find her overwhelmed. Among her last-minute worries were some wonderful corms she had bought for spring planting but had no time to plant.
I, an avid gardener who can't bear the thought of any plant missing its chance to grow, immediately offered to plant them for her. Delighted, she promised to leave them on her back porch.
A few days later, on a chilly autumn morning, I found a frost-covered paper bag on her steps. The contents looked unusual—not like typical bulbs—but as an experimental gardener in Minnesota, I was undeterred. After careful digging and rearranging in her garden, I planted them all to my satisfaction.
Months later, over a dinner celebrating her return, we laughed about her pre-trip chaos. Then she exclaimed, "I still can't believe I forgot to put those corms out!"
Confused, I reminded her they were on the porch as promised.
"No," she said, "they're still on my kitchen counter."
A look of dawning realization mixed with amusement and alarm spread across her face. After a few apologetic hesitations, she revealed the truth: "That was cat poop. I cleaned the litter box before leaving and must have left the bag on the steps. You planted cat poop."
The news took a moment to sink in. I was replaying the image of myself lovingly planting those hard little kernels into the earth.
Miriam, trying not to laugh, finally asked, "So, where did you plant them?"
"Uh, next to the catnip," I replied.
We both collapsed into helpless laughter. To my surprise, I found myself laughing heartily.
Years have passed. Both our gardens and our friendship have continued to grow. That story has become one of our dearest bonds. I guess, true to form, I really will try to plant just about anything.
中文翻译
我的好友米里亚姆正准备进行一次秋季长途旅行。在她出发的前一天，我打电话祝福她，却发现她已焦头烂额。让她烦恼的最后一件事，是她买了一些很棒的花球茎，准备春天种植，但现在根本没时间种了。
我是一位狂热的园丁，无法忍受任何植物失去生长机会的想法，立刻主动提出帮她种植。她很高兴，答应把球茎放在她后门的门廊上。
几天后，在一个寒冷的秋晨，我在她的台阶上发现了一个覆着白霜的纸袋。里面的东西看起来不寻常——不像典型的球茎——但作为明尼苏达州的一名实验性园丁，我没有退缩。我在她的花园里仔细挖掘、重新布置，心满意足地把它们都种好了。
几个月后，在一次庆祝她归来的晚餐上，我们笑着谈起她旅行前的混乱。然后她惊呼：“我还是不敢相信我忘了把那些球茎拿出来！”
我很困惑，提醒她球茎按约定放在门廊上了。
“不，”她说，“它们还在我的厨房台面上。”
一种混合着好笑和惊慌的恍然表情在她脸上蔓延。经过几次歉意的犹豫后，她揭示了真相：“那是猫粪。我离开前清理了猫砂盆，一定是把袋子忘在台阶上了。你种的是猫粪。”
这个消息让我愣了一会儿。我脑海中回放着自己满怀爱意地将那些坚硬的小颗粒种进土里的画面。
米里亚姆强忍着笑，最后问道：“那么，你把它们种在哪儿了？”
“呃，种在猫薄荷旁边了，”我回答。
我们俩都忍不住大笑起来。令我惊讶的是，我发现自己笑得非常开心。
多年过去了。我们的花园和我们的友谊都在继续生长。那个故事也已成为我们最珍贵的纽带之一。我想，一如既往，我真的是什么都愿意试着种一种。