乡间散步(a walk in the country)
it was an early summer afternoon. the sun was shining brightly and warmly. everything on the campus looked as if it had been sleeping for years. after school my roommates and i decided to take a walk along the river near our school， instead of staying with our “mr. formula” and “mrs. theorem” in the classroom.
a fresh breeze played with our hair. in the blue sky， clouds were drifting here and there. we told each other stories and jokes. songs and laughter could be heard now and then. it seemed that the world belonged to us and the earth was full of joys.
we walked and walked. before we knew it， it was nearly nightfall and all glowed red in the evening sunlight. standing on the narrow country road， we felt a bit tired， thirsty and hungry.
“look， what is it？” one of us said， pointing to something red growing by the side of the road. it was a plant， bearing some fruit， which looked so inviting that we all eager to taste it. i picked one. to my happy surprise， it was a bit sweet. everyone of us picked a lot. while eating the little red fruit， we talked of the wonderful time we had that afternoon. then a country woman came. when she saw us eating the wild fruit she let out a cry of surprise. she told us it was used to poison snakes. that meant， we thought with horror， that we were in danger.the story that some poison for mice left in the kitchen killed a lovely baby came to my mind. the more we talked， the more we were frightened. all of a sudden someone mentioned the word “death”。 we looked at each other not knowing what to do.
thinking of the coming death i felt the world was so dear that i was quite unwilling to leave her and time was so precious that i had no right to waste it.
“i should have valued my life. how i love life！” i thought， “if i am still living tomorrow morning， it will be my second life. i will not waste time any longer.”
as soon as we were back at school we showed the red fruit to our biology teacher. she told us with a smile， “that is wild strawberry。 it is not poisonous.
as the bell rang announcing it was time for self study， we had to enter the classroom without supper. though i was hungry， i should waste no time， and i worked harder than ever. how valuable life is！ how precious time is！
