There is a small gray hut on a green hill. Inside the hut is the weather machine for the town. Sven works there. It is his job to make the weather nice.
绿色的山丘上有一间灰色的小屋。小屋里是全镇的天气机。斯文在那里工作。他的工作就是让天气变好。
The machine is big and old. It has many silver pipes and one red button. On Mondays it makes rain for the farmers. On Saturdays it makes sun for the market. Sven likes his work. He drinks tea and reads a book.
这台机器又大又旧。它有许多银色的管子和一个红色的按钮。星期一，它为农夫们下雨。星期六，它为集市放晴。斯文喜欢他的工作。他喝着茶，看着书。
One hot afternoon, a girl knocks on the door. She is eight years old. She has a yellow hat and a very serious face.
一个炎热的下午，一个女孩敲响了门。她八岁，戴着一顶黄帽子，脸上的神情非常认真。
"Hello," she says. "My name is Maya. Can you make snow?"
“你好，”她说，“我叫玛雅。你能造出雪吗？”
Sven laughs. "Snow? It is summer."
斯文笑了。“雪？现在是夏天啊。”
"I know," says Maya. "Tomorrow is my birthday. I never see snow. My town is always warm. My grandfather lives far away. He sends me photos of snow. I want to touch it."
“我知道，”玛雅说，“明天是我的生日。我从来没见过雪。我们镇上总是很暖和。我的爷爷住在很远的地方。他给我寄雪的照片。我想摸一摸雪。”
Sven looks at her. He looks at the machine. He scratches his head.
斯文看着她。他又看了看机器。他挠了挠头。
"The machine makes only small clouds," he says. "And snow is hard. I do not know if it works."
“这台机器只能造小云，”他说，“而且雪很难造。我不知道行不行。”
"Please try," says Maya.
“请你试一试吧，”玛雅说。
Sven puts on his glasses. He turns a blue wheel to the left. He turns a green wheel to the right. He pushes the red button. The pipes make a long, loud sound.
斯文戴上眼镜。他把蓝色的轮子往左转，又把绿色的轮子往右转。他按下了红色的按钮。管子发出一阵又长又响的声音。
They go outside and look at the sky. A small cloud comes. It is white and round. Then it starts to rain. The rain is warm. It falls on the grass.
他们走到外面，抬头看天。一朵小云飘来了。它又白又圆。然后它开始下雨。雨是暖的。它落在草地上。
"That is rain," says Maya.
“这是雨，”玛雅说。
"Yes," says Sven. "Wrong wheel. Let us try again."
“是啊，”斯文说，“转错轮子了。我们再试一次。”
He goes back inside. He turns the blue wheel more. The machine makes a cold, soft sound. Outside, a thin white fog moves across the hill. It gets into Maya's hat. Her nose gets red.
他回到屋里。他把蓝色的轮子又转了一些。机器发出一种冰冷而轻柔的声音。外面，一层薄薄的白雾飘过山丘。它钻进了玛雅的帽子里。她的鼻子冻红了。
"That is fog," she says.
“这是雾，”她说。
"Yes," says Sven. "Better. But still not snow."
“是啊，”斯文说，“好一点了。但还不是雪。”
He sits down and thinks. He opens a drawer and finds an old paper. It is a note from the maker. It says, "For snow, make it cold and slow."
他坐下来思考。他打开一个抽屉，找到一张旧纸。那是制造者留下的字条。上面写着：“想要下雪，就让它又冷又慢。”
"Slow," Sven says. "Of course."
“慢，”斯文说，“当然了。”
He turns the blue wheel to the end. Then he waits. He waits one minute. Two minutes. Three minutes. Maya sits next to him. She does not say a word. Her hands are cold, and her eyes are big.
他把蓝色的轮子转到了底。然后他等着。他等了一分钟。两分钟。三分钟。玛雅坐在他身边。她一句话也没说。她的手很冷，眼睛睁得大大的。
Then the machine makes a tiny click.
然后机器发出了一声轻轻的咔哒。
"Come," says Sven.
“来吧，”斯文说。
They run outside. A small gray cloud sits over the school yard. The yard is at the bottom of the hill. The cloud is only as big as a bus. And from it, something white falls, slowly, slowly.
他们跑到外面。一朵灰色的小云停在学校的操场上空。操场在山脚下。那朵云只有一辆公共汽车那么大。有白色的东西从云里落下来，慢慢地，慢慢地。
"Snow!" says Maya.
“雪！”玛雅喊道。
She runs down the hill. Sven walks behind her. Her yellow hat is the only bright thing there. The snow falls on her arms and her shoes. It does not stay for long. In five minutes, the cloud is thin. Then the snow stops.
她跑下山坡。斯文跟在她后面走。她的黄帽子是那里唯一鲜艳的东西。雪落在她的胳膊上和鞋子上。它停留的时间不长。五分钟后，云变薄了。然后雪停了。
But for five minutes, it is winter in summer. Two children on the road stop and look. A woman comes out of the bakery. She has a white cake in her hands. Everyone is quiet.
但在这五分钟里，夏天里下起了冬天的雪。路上有两个孩子停下来望着。一个女人从面包店里走出来。她手里捧着一个白色的蛋糕。大家都静静的。
Maya stands in the school yard. She opens her mouth wide. She catches one flake on her tongue.
玛雅站在学校的操场上。她把嘴张得大大的。她用舌头接住了一片雪花。
