23 Narcissus
水仙花

Narcissus had a twin sister whom he loved better than anyone else in the world． —
水仙花有一个他更爱的孪生姐妹。 —

This sister died when she was young and very beautiful． —
这位姐妹年轻美丽地去世了。 —

Narcissus missed her so very much that he wished he might die too．
水仙花非常想念她，以至于希望自己也能去世。

One day，as he sat on the ground by a spring，looking absently into the water and thinking of his lost sister，he saw a face like hers，looking up at him． —
有一天，他坐在泉水旁的地上，茫然地望着水中的倒影，想念他失去的姐妹，看到一个看起来像她的面孔望着他。 —

It seemed as if his sister had become a water nymph and were actually there in the spring，but she would not speak to him．
他感觉好像他的姐妹已经成为一个水中的仙女，实际上就在泉水中，但她不愿与他说话。

Of course the face Narcissus saw was really the reflection of his own face in the water，but he did not know that． —
当然，水仙花看到的脸实际上是他自己在水中的反射，但他不知道。 —

In those days there were no clear mirrors like ours； —
那时候还没有明亮的镜子，像我们现在用的那样； —

and the idea of one’s appearance that could be got from a polished brass shield，for instance，was a very dim one． —
从一个抛光的黄铜盾牌上，你所看到的自己的样子是非常模糊的。 —

So Narcissus leaned over the water and looked at the beautiful face so like his sister’s，and wondered what it was and whether he should ever see his sister again．
所以水仙花俯身在水面上，看着那张美丽的面孔，好像他姐妹的人，思考着那是什么，是否能再见到他的姐妹。

After this，he came back to the spring day after day and looked at the face he saw there，and mourned for his sister until，at last，the gods felt sorry for him and changed him into a flower．
从那时起，他每天回到泉边，看着水中所看到的脸，为他姐妹而哀悼，直到最后，众神对他感到抱歉，将他变成了一朵花。

This flower was the first narcissus ．All the flowers of thisfamily，when they grow by the side of a pond or a stream，still bend their beautiful heads and look at the reflection of their owfaces in the water．
这朵花就是第一朵水仙花。凡是这个家族的花，当它们长在池塘或小溪边时，依然低下美丽的头看着水中他们自己的脸的倒影。