1、TheWindmill风车On the hill there stood a windmill stately to look at and very proud of itself.But Im not proud at all, it said, though Im much enlightened, outside and inside. On the outside I have the sun and moon, and for inward use, too; and I also have wax candles, oil lamps, and tallow candles. Y
2、es, I daresay Im enlightened. Im a thinking individual and so well built that Im a pleasure to look at. I have a good windpipe in my chest, and I have four wings placed upon my head, just under my hat. Even the birds have only two wings and have to carry them on their backs. Im a Dutchman by birth -
3、 you can tell that from my figure - a Flying Dutchman! People call them supernatural beings, I know, and yet Im quite natural. Theres a gallery round my stomach, and a dwelling place underneath it; thats where my thoughts live. My strongest thought, who rules and governs, is called by the other thou
4、ghts: The Millers. He knows what he wants, and rules over the flour and the oats; but he has a mate, too, who calls herself Mother. She is my real heart. She doesnt run around awkwardly; she knows what she wants and what she can do. Shes as gentle as the wind and as strong as a tempest; she knows ho
5、w to lead up to a thing carefully but get her own way. She is my softer side, and the father is my harder; they are two and yet one; and each calls the other My better half.These two have youngsters, little thoughts that will grow up, and these little ones make a lot of noise.The other day I wisely
6、let the father and his helpers examine my throat and the hole in my chest. I wanted to know what was wrong, for something was wrong, and when youre out of order its well to look into yourself. The youngsters made a tremendous racket, which was very annoying to me; for, remember, on the top hill wher
7、e I stand I am in the limelight, and one is judged accordingly. The youngest one jumped up into my hat and shouted so up there that it tickled me. Yes, I know those little thoughts will grow up. Out in the world thoughts come, too, but theyre not my sort; as far as I can see, I cannot make out anyth
8、ing like me. Those wingless houses, that cant make a noise in their throats, have thoughts, too, and these sometimes come to my thoughts, and make love to them, as people call it. Yes, its very strange, but there are many strange things. Some change has come over me, or inside me, something is diffe
9、rent in the working of the mill. It seems as if the one half, the father, has altered and got an even gentler and more affectionate mate - young and good as before, but more tender and gentle through the course of time. The bitter has somehow passed away, and everything is much more pleasant.The day
10、s pass, and the days come, always forward to brightness and happiness, until the day comes when it will be all over with me and yet not entirely over. Ill have to be torn down so that I can be built up again, new and better; I shall cease, but Ill still live! Become a different being, and yet be the
11、 same! Enlightened as I am with sun, moon, wax, oil, and tallow, I still find that difficult to understand. My old timbers and brickwork will rise again from the dust!I hope Ill be able to keep my old thoughts, the Miller, the mother, the great ones and little ones - the family, as I call all that g
12、reat and little company of thoughts; because I cannot do without them.And I must also remain myself, with my throat in my chest, wings on my head, and the balcony around my waist; otherwise I wouldnt know myself, and other people wouldnt know me and say, Theres the Mill on the hill, a proud sight to
13、 see, and yet not proud at all!Thats what the Mill said. It said a great many more things, too, but thats the most important part of it.And the days came and the days passed, and yesterday was the last day. Then the Mill caught fire. The flames shot up: they whipped in; they whipped out; they licked
14、 beams and planks and ate them up. The Mill disappeared, and only a heap of ashes remained. The smoke rose from the embers until the wind carried it away.Whatever had been alive in the Mill still remained; nothing happened to any of them; indeed, they gained by it.The Millers family - one soul, may
15、thoughts, and yet only one thought - got a new, a beautiful mill, a mill they could be very proud of. It looked exactly like the old one, and people said, Why, theres the Mill on the hill, a proud sight to see!But this Mill was better arranged, much more up to date than the other one, for there is always some progress. The old timber, which had become damp and worm-eaten, now was dust and ashes. The body of the Mill did not actually rise out of the dust, as it had believed it would do; it had taken the thought literally, and not everything is supposed to be taken literally.
