The Pretty Plum Sister 漂亮的李子妹妹
Justin was a climber.By one and a half，he had discovered the purple plum tree in the backyard，and its friendly branches became his favorite hangout.
At first he would climb just a few feet and make himself comfortable in the curve where the trunk met the branches.Soon he was building himself a small fort and dragging his toy tractors and trucks up to their new garage.
One day when he was two，Justin was playing in the tree as usual.I turned my back to prune the rosebush，and he disappeared.“Justin，where are you？”I hollered.His tiny voice called back，“Up here，Mommy，picking all the plums for you！”I looked up in horror and disbelief.There was Justin on the roof of the house，filling his plastic bucket with the ripe juicy plums from his favorite tree.
When Justin was three，I became pregnant.My husband and I explained to him that we were going to have another baby as a playmate for him.He was very excited，kissed my tummy and said，“Hello，baby，I'm your big brother，Justin.”
From the beginning he was sure he was going to have a little sister，and every day he'd beg to know if she was ready to play yet.When I explained that the baby wasn't arriving until the end of June，he seemed confused.One day he asked，“When is June，Mommy？”I realized I needed a better explanation；how could a three-year-old know what“June”meant？Just then，as Justin climbed into the low branches of the plum tree，he gave me the answer I was looking for……his special tree.“Justin，the baby is going to be born when the plums are ripe.You can keep me posted when that will be，okay？”I wasn't completely sure if I was on target，but the gardener in me was confident I'd be close enough.
Oh，he was excited！Now Justin had a way to know when his new baby sister would come to play.From that moment on，he checked the old plum tree several times a day and reported his findings to me.Of course，he was quite concerned in November when all the leaves fell off the tree.By January，with the cold and the rains，he was truly worried whether his baby-sister would be cold and wet like his tree.He whispered to my tummy that the tree was strong and that she（the baby）had to be strong too，and make it through the winter.
By February a few purple leaves began to shoot forth，and his excitement couldn't be contained.“My tree is growing，Mommy！Pretty soon she'll have baby plums，and then I'll have my baby sister.”March brought the plum's beautiful tiny white flowers，and Justin was overjoyed.“She's b'ooming，Mommy！”he chattered，struggling with the word“blooming.”He rushed to kiss my tummy and got kicked in the mouth.“The baby's moving，Mommy，she's b'ooming，too.I think she wants to come out and see the flowers.”So it went for the next couple of months，as Justin checked every detail of his precious plum tree and reported to me about the flowers turning to tiny beads that would become plums.
The rebirth of his tree gave me ample opportunity to explain the development of the fetus that was growing inside me.Sometimes I think he believed I had actually planted a“baby seed”inside my tummy，because when I drank water he'd say things like，“You're watering our little flower，Mommy！”I'd laugh and once again explain in simple terms the story of the birds and the bees，the plants and the trees.
June finally arrived，and so did the purple plums.At first they were fairly small，but Justin climbed his tree anyway to pick some plums off the branches where the sun shone warmest.He brought them to me to let me know the baby wasn't ripe yet.I felt ripe！I was ready to pop！When were the plums going to start falling from that darn tree？
Justin would rub my tummy and talk to his baby sister，telling her she had to wait a little longer because the fruit was not ready to be picked yet.His forays into the plum tree lasted longer each day，as if he was coaxing the tree to ripen quickly.He talked to the tree and thanked it for letting him know about this important event in his life.
Then one day，it happened.Justin came running into the house，his eyes as big as saucers，with a plastic bucket full to the brim of juicy purple plums.“Hurry，Mommy，hurry！”he shouted.“She's coming，she's coming！The plums are ripe，the plums are ripe！”I laughed uncontrollably as Justin stared at my stomach，as if he expected to see his baby sister erupt any moment.That morning I did feel a bit queasy，and it wasn't because I had a dental appointment.
Before we left the house，Justin went out to hug his plum tree and whisper that today was the day his“plum pretty sister”would arrive.He was certain.As I sat in the dental chair，the labor pains began，just as Justin had predicted.Our“plum”baby was coming！I called my parents，and my husband rushed me to the hospital.At 6：03 p.m.on June 22，the day that will forever live in family fame as“Pretty Plum Sister Day，”our daughter was born.We didn't name her Purple Plum as Justin suggested，but chose another favorite flower，Heather.
At Heather's homecoming，Justin kissed his new playmate and presented her with his plastic bucket，full to the brim with sweet，ripe，purple plums.“These are for you，”he said proudly.
Justin and Heather are now teenagers，and the plum tree has become our bonding symbol.Although we moved from the home that housed Justin's favorite plum tree，the first tree to be planted in our new yard was a purple plum，so that Justin and Heather could know when to expect her special day.Throughout their growing-up years，the children spent countless hours nestled in the branches，counting down the days through the birth of leaves，flowers，buds and fruit.Our birthday parties are always festooned with plum branches and baskets brimming with freshly picked purple plums.Because as Mother Nature-and Justin-would have it，for the last fifteen years，the purple plum has ripened exactly on June 22.
贾斯汀是个喜欢爬树的小家伙。还不到一岁半的时候，他发现了后院的紫李子树，此后那招人待见的李子树枝就成了他最喜欢的去处。
最初他只能爬几英尺高，美美地呆在树干与树枝连接的拐弯地儿。很快他就在那里给自己建了个小堡垒，把他的玩具拖拉机、卡车都弄了上去，安放在它们的新车库里。
两岁时的一天，贾斯汀像平常一样在树上玩。我转过身去修剪蔷薇，他却不见了。“贾斯汀，你在哪儿？”我叫道。他细小的声音传来，“上边这儿呢，妈妈，我给你把所有的李子摘下来！”我担惊害怕又难以置信的向上望去，贾斯汀正站在屋顶上，往他的塑料桶里装熟透的李子果呢。
贾斯汀三岁的时候，我怀孕了。我和丈夫向他解释说我们将有另一个孩子给他作玩伴。他高兴坏了，亲吻我的肚子，还说，“你好，宝贝儿，我是你的大哥哥，贾斯汀。”
从一开始，他就相信他会有个小妹妹，每天都求我告诉他她是不是可以出来玩了。我向他解释说孩子直到六月底才会出生，他似乎不大明白。一天，他问，“什么时候是六月，妈妈？”我意识到需要有个更好的解释；一个三岁的孩子怎么知道“六月”意味着什么呢？就在那时，贾斯汀爬到了李子树的低枝上，这下，我有了我想要的答案……那对他来说特别的李子树。“贾斯汀，李子熟的时候，孩子就会出生了。你可以随时告诉妈妈李子什么时候成熟，好吗？”我并不十分确定我一定会在那天生，但可以确信的是，即便不是那天，我的产期也会将近了。
啊，他简直兴奋极了！现在，贾斯汀有办法知道他的小妹妹何时能出来跟他玩了。从那一刻起，他每天都要察看李子树好几遍，并把他的发现报告给我。当然了，十一月树叶都掉光时，他很是不安。到一月份的时候，寒冷加上阴雨的天气，他真的着急了，担心他妹妹是不是和他的树一样会挨冻受淋。他对着我的肚子跟妹妹说悄悄话，说树很强壮，所以她也要很强壮，要坚强地度过冬天。
近二月的时候，些许紫色的树叶开始抽芽生长，他的兴奋之情溢于言表。“我的树在长呢，妈妈！她很快就结小李子了，然后我就有小妹妹了。”三月，李子树开花了，白色的小花，很美，贾斯汀欣喜若狂。“她开～花了，妈妈！”他不停地欢呼着，可“开花”的音都还发不准确。他冲过来亲我的肚子，嘴巴被（肚子里的婴儿）踢了一下。“小孩儿在动呢，妈妈，她也开～花了。我觉得她想出来看花。”这样又过了两个月，贾斯汀真是把他的宝贝李子树上上下下、里里外外地看了个遍，还一五一十地向我报告，花变成小球儿了，要结李子果了。
他的树复苏，这给了我一个解释我体内胚胎发育的好机会。有的时候，我想他是觉得我实际上在肚子里种了一颗“婴儿种子”，因为我喝水的时候，他会这样说，“你在给我们的小花浇水呢，妈妈！”我捧腹大笑，不得不再一次用简单的话给他讲鸟儿和蜜蜂的故事，还有植物、树什么的。
六月终于到来，李子也成熟了。开始，它们相当小，但贾斯汀还是爬到了日照最多的树枝上摘下来一些李子果。他拿给我看，要让我知道婴儿也还没熟。可是，我可感觉自己熟了！我都快要爆了！李子果何时才开始从那黑压压的树上往下掉呢？
贾斯汀会摩挲着我的肚子，对他的小妹妹说话，告诉她得多等一会儿，因为果子还没熟到能摘的阶段。他每天在树上呆得时间也越来越长，像在哄着树好让果子快点成熟。他对树倾诉自己的心声，还感谢树让他了解了这件在他生命中很重要的事情。
后来，一天，事情发生了。贾斯汀跑进屋子里，眼睛睁得像茶碟那么大，手里掂着满满一塑料桶熟透了的李子。“快点，妈妈，快点！”他大声喊着，“她要来了，她要来了！李子熟了，李子熟了！”他盯着我的肚子，就好像他的小妹妹随时都会从我肚子里迸出来似的，逗得我合不拢嘴。那天早晨，我的确感到身子有点不舒服，不过那可不是我约了牙医的原因。
我们出门之前，贾斯汀跑去拥抱他的李子树，悄悄说，今天是他“漂亮的李子妹妹”来到这个世上的日子。他坚信不疑。我坐在椅上牙疗的时候，分娩前的疼痛就开始了，就像贾斯汀预测的那样，我们的“李子”宝贝要来了！我给我父母打了电话，我丈夫急忙把我送到医院。六月二十二日，将会以“漂亮的李子妹妹日”永远成为家族史里有名的一天，下午六点零三分，我们的女儿诞生了。我们没有像贾斯汀建议的那样叫她紫李子，但是选择了另一种我们非常喜爱的花的名字，海孜。
海孜回家时，贾斯汀亲了亲他的新伙伴，把一塑料桶装得满满的、香甜、熟透了的紫红色李子呈现给她，自豪地说，“这是给你的。”
贾斯汀和海孜现在都是十几岁的孩子了，而李子树也成了我们亲密关系的象征。虽然我们从种着贾斯汀那颗心爱的李子树的房子搬了出去，但我们在新家院子里种的第一棵树就是李子树，这样，贾斯汀和海孜就能知道她的生日是哪天了。在他们长大的这些年里，他们有数不清的时间在树枝间玩耍，数着树从长叶，开花，结果到果实成熟的日子。我们的生日聚会总是装点着李子树枝编的花环，还有一篮篮新摘的李子果。用贾斯汀的话说，是由于母亲的天性使然，在过去的十五年里，李子果成熟的日子竟都是在六月二十二日。
译者感言
这个小男孩儿真是太可爱了！他的顽皮和童真，他的细腻和坚定……他天真纯洁的心灵里充满了对生活的肯定和热爱。想着小小的他费劲却勇敢地爬上屋顶给妈妈摘李子吃，想着才三四岁、口齿还不清的他摸着妈妈的肚子呀呀稚语，想着十个月间他每天都巴巴地注视着李树的每一枝、每一叶，小心翼翼地看护每一朵花、每一个果实，想着他担忧的神情和激动兴奋的心情，想着小小的他认定这将是他生命中非常重要的事情……每一位读者心中都会充盈着爱和感动，再郁闷的人也会笑出声，再苦涩的人都会感到幸福。我们这样，更何况是他的母亲呢？男孩儿让她的生活中撒满阳光和欢笑，让她一路走来心里感受着满足和幸福，让她时隔多年，依旧记着当时的点滴和片刻，写下这篇美丽的文字。
