第4节

Now and then Haw thought about his mice friends, Sniff and Scurry, and wondered if they had found any cheese yet. He believed they might be having a hard time, as running through the Maze usually involved some uncertainty. But he also knew that it was likely to only last for a while.

唧唧仍然时时想起他的老鼠朋友，猜想他们现在是否已经找到了奶酪，他相信他们也许过得很困难。在迷宫中穿行，总会面临许多难以预料的事情。但他也知道，什么事情也得有不容易的一个阶段。

Sometimes, Haw would imagine Sniff and Scurry finding New Cheese and enjoying it. He thought about how good it would be for him to be out on an adventure in the Maze, and to find fresh New Cheese. He could almost taste it.
The more clearly Haw saw the image of himself finding and enjoying the New Cheese, the more he saw himself leaving Cheese Station C.

有时，唧唧会想像出嗅嗅和匆匆已经找到了奶酪并正在享用它们的情景。他忽然有一种冲动，想到迷宫中冒险去寻找新的奶酪。在迷宫中探险，找到新的奶酪并尽情享用，这一切该是多么的美好啊！想到这里，他觉得仿佛自己已经尝到了新鲜的奶酪。

"Let's go!" he exclaimed, all of a sudden.

突然，他大声宣布道：“我们走吧！”

"No," Hem quickly responded. "I like it here. It's comfortable. It's what I know. Besides, it's dangerous out there."

“不！”哼哼很快做出了反应：“我喜欢这里。我只熟悉这里，这里很好很舒服。再说，离开这里到外面去很危险的。”

"No it isn't," Haw argued. "We've run through many parts of the Maze before, and we can do it again."

“不会的，”唧唧说：“以前我们也曾经到过这个迷宫中的许多地方，我们还可以再去其他地方找找看。”

"I'm getting too old for that," Hem said. "And I'm afraid I'm not interested in getting lost and making a fool of myself. Are you?"

“我觉得自己已经有此老了，不能再做这种跑来跑去到处冒险的事了。”

With that, Haw's fear of failing returned and his hope of finding New Cheese faded.

哼哼说：“而且，我也不会像个傻瓜似的，时常迷路。你觉得呢？”

So every day, the little people continued to do what they had done before. They went to Cheese Station C, found no Cheese, and returned home, carrying their worries and frustrations with them. ~They tried to deny what was happening, but found it harder to get to sleep, had less energy the next day, and were becoming irritable.

听哼哼这么一说，失败的恐惧感又袭上了唧唧的心头，他的那点发现新的奶酪的希望又逐渐消退了。就这样，这两个小矮人继续做着以前每天所做的事。他们仍然每天都去奶酪C站，发现还是找不到奶酪，然后怀着忧虑和挫败的心情回到家里。他们试图否认眼前发生的一切，开始失眠，力气一天比一天小，变得越来越烦躁易怒。

Their homes were not the nurturing places they once were. The little people had difficulty sleeping and were having nightmares about not finding any Cheese.

他们的家，也不再是美好舒适的地方。他们睡不上一个安稳觉，而且每晚的时光都伴着找不到奶酪的噩梦度过。

But Hem and Haw still returned to Cheese Station C and waited there every day.

但他们仍然每天都回到奶酪C站，仍然每天在那里等待。

Hem said, "You know, if we just work harder, we'll find that nothing has really changed that much. The Cheese is probably nearby. Maybe they just hid it behind the wall."

哼哼说：“你知道，如果我们再努力一些，我们也许会发现事情并没有发生太大的变化。奶酪也许就在附近，它们也许只是被人藏到墙后面去了。”

The next day, Hem and Haw returned with tools. Hem held the chisel while Haw banged on the hammer until they made a hole in the wall of Cheese Station C. They peered inside but found no Cheese.

第二天，哼哼和唧唧带了工具回到奶酪C站。哼哼拿着凿子，唧唧则用锤子敲打，他们费了九牛二虎之力，终于在墙上打出了一个洞，朝里面窥视，去依旧没发现奶酪的踪迹。

They were disappointed but believed they could solve the problem. So they started earlier, stayed longer, and worked harder. But after a while, all they had was a large hole in the wall.

尽管他们感到非常失望，但他们仍然相信问题会得到解决。以后，他们起得很早，工作得更长、更努力。但是，一段时间以后，他们得到的只是一个个更大的洞。