The Bucket's Quick Roll- 適合中高級的英語短篇故事

Flora swung the grain-shed door wide and reached up for a feed bucket that clinked against its hook. She had already measured one scoop of coarse hay and another of chopped greens, their weight tugging her arm downward. Beside her knees, two smaller buckets hung in careful symmetry, ready for the rabbit round later. An old blue barrel, once part of a water conservation project, leaned near the threshold and caught a thin line of light. With the dog trotting ahead, she crossed the gravel and unbolted the goat-pen gate, the hinges answering with a deep groan. Widespread bleating rolled over the fence as the goats pressed forward, muzzles bumping her thighs in quick, urgent nudges.

Flora forked the first bundle of hay into the wooden manger; the goats lunged, and the slats held steady. Thinking the space still roomy, she lifted a denser second bundle and packed it firmly, the structure now flexing under the load. A third forkful had been pressed into place before she noticed the front bar bowing, yet she shoved the chopped greens on top anyway. The extra weight shifted; one goat tugged the lowest stems. The bundle slid out like a sleeve and knocked the empty bucket onto its rim. The spinning bucket bumped the wheelbarrow’s flat tyre; the barrow lurched sideways, striking a shallow pan that usually gathered rinse water. The pan skidded along the boards and poured its cool contents across the mud, a quiet chain now racing toward her boots.

Cold liquid soaked her soles. Mud began to solidify around the treads, anchoring her in place for a breath. She doubted the sustainability of that overloaded manger now, so she braced her knees and yanked the middle forkful back out. Freed from the wedge, the remaining layers dropped neatly, and the bowed bar returned to a straight line. She hoisted the wheelbarrow upright, stopping the ripple of objects before anything else tumbled. Tiny waves rolled inside the disturbed trough, catching early light as they chased one another toward the far rim. A slow drip tapped against the metal, counting time into the quiet yard.

芙蘿拉猛力把穀倉的門推開，伸手取下掛在鉤子上的飼料桶，金屬邊緣叮噹作響。她已經舀了一勺粗乾草和一勺切碎的青菜，沉甸甸地拉著她的手臂。她膝邊兩個較小的桶對稱地晃著，等會兒要餵兔子。門口邊靠著一只舊藍桶，之前用來收集再利用水，斜斜的光線落在桶身。農場狗跑在前頭，她踩過碎石，推開山羊欄的搭扣，鐵鉸鏈發出低沉的聲音。山羊大聲咩叫，普遍地擠向前，用鼻子頂她的大腿，動作又快又急。

芙蘿拉將第一捆乾草叉進木製飼槽，山羊猛地撲過去，木條仍牢牢撐住。她覺得空隙還夠，又塞進第二捆更重的草，飼槽開始微微彎曲。第三捆壓進去時前橫杆已經下彎，她還是把青菜堆到最上面。重量移動，一隻山羊扯出最底層草束，那團草像袖子般滑出，撞翻旁邊空桶。桶旋轉著撞到輪胎洩氣的手推車，手推車斜倒，擊中一只平常用來接洗水的淺盤。淺盤沿著木板滑行，把涼水潑向泥地，一串安靜的連鎖反應迅速衝向她的靴子。

冰冷的水濺濕了鞋底，泥土開始在鞋紋周圍變硬，短暫地把她定在原地。她覺得那被塞爆的飼槽撐不了多久，於是蹲下膝蓋，抽出中間那捆乾草。楔子一拔掉，其餘草層乖乖落下，彎曲的橫杆恢復平直。她把手推車扶正，阻止了更多物件翻倒。受干擾的水槽裡仍有細小浪紋，在初晨的光線中追逐向遠端。金屬邊緣傳來緩慢的滴水聲，滴答地在寧靜的院子裡計數。