格林童話:Lazy Heinz懶鬼哈利和胖婆特琳娜

Lazy Heinz

Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm

Heinz was lazy, and although he had nothing else to do but to drive his goat out to the pasture every day, he nevertheless groaned every evening when he returned home after finishing his day's work.

"It is in truth a heavy burden," he said, "and a tiresome job, to drive such a goat out to the field year in and year out until late in the fall. If I could only lie down and sleep at it! But no, I must keep my eyes open so it won't damage the young trees, or force its way through the hedge into a garden, or even run away altogether. How can I get some rest and enjoy life?"

He sat down, collected his thoughts, and considered how he could lift this burden from his shoulders. For a long time his thoughts led to nothing, but suddenly it was as if scales were removed from his eyes.

"I know what I will do," he shouted. "I will marry Fat Trina. She too has a goat, and she can drive mine out with hers, and then I shall no longer have to torment myself."

So Heinz got up, set his weary limbs into motion, and walked across the street, for it was no further than that, to where Fat Trina's parents lived, and asked for the hand in marriage of their industrious and virtuous daughter.

Her parents did not think about it for long. "Birds of a feather, flock together," they thought, and gave their consent.

So Fat Trina became Heinz's wife, and drove out both of the goats. Heinz now enjoyed life, having no work to rest from, but his own laziness.

He went out with her only now and then, saying, "I'm doing this so that afterwards I will enjoy resting more. Otherwise I shall lose all feeling for it."

However, Fat Trina was no less lazy.

"Dear Heinz," she said one day, "why should we make our lives so miserable, ruining the best days of our youth, when there is no need for it? The two goats disturb our best sleep every morning with their bleating. Wouldn't it be better for us to give them to our neighbor, who will give us a beehive for them? We will put the beehive in a sunny place behind the house, and then not give it any more thought. Bees do not have to be taken care of, nor driven into the field. They fly out and find their way home again by themselves, and they collect honey without any effort at all on our part."

"You have spoken like a sensible woman," replied Heinz. "We will carry out your proposal without delay. And furthermore, honey tastes better and is more nourishing than goat's milk, and it keeps longer too."

the neighbor willingly gave them a beehive for the two goats. The bees flew tirelessly in and out from early morning until late evening, filling the hive with the best honey. Thus that fall-time, Heinz was able to take out a whole jugful.

they placed the jug on a shelf on their bedroom wall. Fearing that it might be stolen, or that the mice might get into it, Trina brought in a stout hazel stick and put it beside her bed, so that she would be able to reach it without having to get up, and then from her place in bed drive away the uninvited guests.

Lazy Heinz did not like to get out of bed before noon. "He who rises early," he would say, "wastes his wealth."

One morning when he was still lying in the feathers in broad daylight, resting from his long sleep, he said to his wife, "Women are fond of sweets, and you have been snacking on the honey. It would be better for us to exchange it for a goose with a young gosling, before you eat it all up."

"But not before we have a child to take care of them." replied Trina. Am I to torment myself with the young geese, wasting all my energy on them for no reason?"

"Do you think," said Heinz, "that the boy will tend geese? Nowadays children no longer obey. They do just as they please, because they think that they are smarter than their parents, just like that servant who was supposed to look for the cow and chased after three blackbirds."

"Oh," replied Trina, "he will get it if he does not do what I say. I will take a stick and tan his hide with more blows than can be counted."

"See here, Heinz," she shouted in her fervor, seizing the stick that she intended to use to drive away the mice. "See here! This is how I will beat him."

She struck forth, unfortunately hitting the jug of honey above the bed. The jug struck against the wall and fell down in pieces. The fine honey flowed out onto the floor.

"there lies the goose with the young gosling," said Heinz. "And they do not need to be tended. But it is lucky that the jug did not fall on my head. We have every reason to be satisfied with our fate."

then noticing that there was still some honey in one of the pieces of the jug, he reached out for it, saying quite happily, "Wife, let us enjoy the leftovers, and then we will rest a little from the fright we have had. What does it matter if we get up a little later than usual? The day will be long enough."

"Yes," answered Trina, "there is always time enough. You know, the snail was once invited to a wedding and started on his way, but arrived at the child's baptism. In front of the house it fell over the fence, and said, 'Haste makes waste.'"

哈利是個大懶鬼，其實他只要把羊趕出去放牧，也別無它事。不過每天放羊回家後，他總要唉聲歎氣：“這活實在太累了！成年累月都要去放羊，太乏味了！只是到了秋天才能休閒片刻，要是能躺下來睡上一大覺有多好啊！不過你休想，你得時刻睜着隻眼，否則它就會損壞幼樹，或穿過籬笆進入人家的花園，或乾脆跑掉。人怎樣才能坐下來逍遙逍遙呢？”他於是坐了下來，絞盡腦汁地想着，希望能卸去肩上的負擔。他就是這樣漫無邊際地想着，突然眼皮一眨，大叫道：“有辦法了！胖婆特琳娜不是也有頭羊嗎？我何不娶她爲妻，這樣她不是可以照看我的羊嗎，我也不用再自尋煩惱了。”

哈利馬上從地上爬起來，拖着疲憊的步子，逕直穿過大街，來到了不遠處的特琳娜父母家，直接了當地向他們要求把那勤勞、善良的女孩嫁給他。特琳娜的父母也沒多猶豫，心想：“物以類聚嘛！”便同意了這門親事。

胖婆特琳娜就這樣嫁給了哈利，每天她都要牽着兩頭羊去放。這下哈利可好啦！他不需再幹活，成天無所事事。他有時也和妻子一起去放羊，並說：“我偶爾去去，爲的是將來休息得更多，否則人們就會感覺麻木的。”

然而特琳娜懶起來決不亞於他。“哈利寶貝，”一天她對丈夫說：“我們這麼辛苦幹活何苦呢？簡直是在虛度年華嘛！這真的沒必要。那兩頭羊每天一清早就咩咩地叫，吵得我們睡不好覺，何不把它送給鄰居，與他換一窩蜜蜂不是更好嗎？我們可以把它養到屋後的陽光下，這無需我們多照看，蜜蜂本來就不需人去管，更不用趕到田間去，它們自己會飛來飛去，並且還會採蜜，一點也不麻煩。”“言之有理。”哈利誇道，“我們說做便做，加之蜂蜜比羊奶好吃，更有營養，且保存期也長得多。”

鄰居拿一窩蜜蜂換來了兩頭羊，心裏可歡喜啦！蜜蜂每天忙着飛進飛出，一點也不知疲倦，它們在蜂窩裏釀滿了誘人的蜜，到了秋天，哈利就聚上了滿滿一罐蜜。夫妻倆把那個罐子擺在靠牀的牆壁的擱板上，爲了防小偷和老鼠，特琳娜特意找來了一根粗大的榛樹棒，準備在牀邊，只要有動靜，她一伸手便可拿到，一點也不費神，這樣很快可趕走那些不速之客。

每天不到日當正午，懶鬼哈利可不想起牀。他常說：“起得早，多消耗。”一天早上，日已上三竿，他還直挺在牀上，這時他對妻子說：“女人喜歡甜食，你常獨自一人偷吃蜂蜜，趁你還沒喝光，不如拿它換隻帶崽的鵝來。”“不嘛！”只聽他妻子說：“我們身旁又無小孩，誰去放鵝呢？難道你要我去不成？那可太煩人了。”“你想小傢伙會去放鵝嗎？現在的小孩可沒有那麼聽話，他們做事只圖新鮮，就像那種小孩，本讓他去放牛，卻去追甚麼三隻山鳥。”“哼！”只聽特琳娜說，“如果他膽敢胡來，不聽我的話，我會用棒子敲下他一層皮來，哈利，你說呢？”她面紅耳赤地大叫着，順手操起那根趕老鼠的根子，“瞧，就這麼收拾他！”她伸手一敲，不巧打着了牀頭的蜂蜜罐。罐子猛地撞在牆壁上，碰了個粉碎，甜美的蜂蜜全灑在了地上。

“帶崽的鵝就躺在這兒了，”只聽哈利說，“它們再也不用人來照看了。幸虧罐子沒有砸在我頭上，這真是不幸中的萬幸。”說着，他瞧見了碎罐片上仍殘有一些蜂蜜，便伸手掬起來，口裏津津樂道地說：“老婆啊，剩下的這點我們可以放心吃了。擔了這麼久的驚，我們總算可以安寧了。起得遲又有甚麼的，反正白天夠長的！”“太對了！”特琳娜應和道，“我們總會有出頭之日的。你也知道，有隻蝸牛曾應邀去參加婚禮，可是等別人生下了小孩，並要舉行命名儀式時它才趕到，到了屋前卻一下跌下了籬笆，它不是口中還說：'欲速則不達'嘛！”