紫色泰迪熊

金柏莉·瓦纳

（根据真实故事改写）

连恩不喜欢他的圣诞礼物。

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Panel 1 1 SPOT: Boy, Liam (Age 11) gets a hand-made teddy bear for his gift on Christmas morning. He’s not too happy about it. In the background we can see stockings hung by a fireplace and maybe a little bit of a tree poking in on the side. 2 SPOT: 2 of his younger sisters opening-up presents with their own home-made stuffed animals, not teddy bears. They should look happy and excited about their gifts. 3 SPOT: Mom sewing late at night, making the purple teddy bear. 4 SPOT: Boy in the first image hugging his mom, looking happy.

圣诞节的早晨，连恩起得特别早。他和两个妹妹，荷莉和莎拉，偷偷溜进客厅。在那里，七只自制的长筒袜挂成一排；它们有的又小又宽，有的又长又细，还有的太旧，都褪色了。但对连恩来说，每只袜子都装满了美味的糖果，这才是重要的。

连恩抓起他的袜子，把它倒过来。他皱起了眉头。里面有一支拐杖糖，一颗橘子，还有一小把糖果。

「就只有这些吗？」他问道。

荷莉和莎拉也皱起了眉头。连恩接着笑了——或许这表示他的礼物会非常好！他希望的礼物，是他所有的朋友都在玩的新款电动游戏。

但到最后，当连恩打开他的礼物时，他的失望却只增不减——他的礼物是一只紫色泰迪熊。它是手工缝制的，有黑钮扣作的眼睛，还有线缝出来的一丝笑容。

「圣诞快乐，连恩。」妈妈满面笑容地说。

连恩没有笑。这不是他想要的礼物。

他的妹妹们也得到了填充动物玩偶，三个姊姊也一样；但这并没有让他感觉好一些。这是有史以来最糟糕的圣诞节！

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Panel 2 1 SPOT: Boy, Liam (Age 11) gets a hand-made teddy bear for his gift on Christmas morning. He’s not too happy about it. In the background we can see stockings hung by a fireplace and maybe a little bit of a tree poking in on the side. 2 SPOT: 2 of his younger sisters opening-up presents with their own home-made stuffed animals, not teddy bears. They should look happy and excited about their gifts. 3 SPOT: Mom sewing late at night, making the purple teddy bear. 4 SPOT: Boy in the first image hugging his mom, looking happy.

「怎么了？」他的姊姊艾琳在早餐后问道，「你整个早上都气呼呼的。」

「我一点也不喜欢我的礼物，」他说，「它只是妈妈做的泰迪熊而已。她为什么不给我想要的东西？」

艾琳笑着说：「跟我来。」

她带他到妈妈的卧室，指了指桌上的旧缝纫机。

「这是妈妈的缝纫机，」他说，「那又怎么样？」

「你还看到什么？」

连恩皱起了眉头。他看到了缝纫针、五颜六色的线，还有一些折叠的布块。他也看到一袋填充物，像云朵一样柔软、蓬松。

「我知道，你希望妈妈买别的东西给你作圣诞礼物，」艾琳说，「但我们没有钱买那些东西。我喜欢妈妈做给我的泰迪熊，它证明她有多么爱我。」

「你的意思是什么？」

「做填充玩偶是需要花时间的，也需要耐心。妈妈一连几个小时坐在这张桌子前，为我们每个人缝制玩偶。她确保我们每个人都有一份礼物。你不觉得，那表示她爱我们吗？」

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Panel 3 1 SPOT: Boy, Liam (Age 11) gets a hand-made teddy bear for his gift on Christmas morning. He’s not too happy about it. In the background we can see stockings hung by a fireplace and maybe a little bit of a tree poking in on the side. 2 SPOT: 2 of his younger sisters opening-up presents with their own home-made stuffed animals, not teddy bears. They should look happy and excited about their gifts. 3 SPOT: Mom sewing late at night, making the purple teddy bear. 4 SPOT: Boy in the first image hugging his mom, looking happy.

连恩摸了摸妈妈用来做他泰迪熊的紫色布料。或许艾琳说得对，礼物不一定要奢华，才能成为好礼物。在初级会，连恩学习到，耶稣是最伟大的礼物，而耶稣诞生在简陋的马厩里。

连恩跑去找妈妈，给了她一个大大的拥抱。「谢谢你做的泰迪熊。」他说。

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Panel 4 1 SPOT: Boy, Liam (Age 11) gets a hand-made teddy bear for his gift on Christmas morning. He’s not too happy about it. In the background we can see stockings hung by a fireplace and maybe a little bit of a tree poking in on the side. 2 SPOT: 2 of his younger sisters opening-up presents with their own home-made stuffed animals, not teddy bears. They should look happy and excited about their gifts. 3 SPOT: Mom sewing late at night, making the purple teddy bear. 4 SPOT: Boy in the first image hugging his mom, looking happy.

现在他不觉得收到泰迪熊很可笑了。即使一份礼物都没有，他仍感受到家人的爱，而那才让圣诞节变得很特别。●

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Page from the December 2022 Friend Magazine.

黛比·拉玛利绘