The hippopotamus at Dinner

The Hippopotamus（河馬） went into a restaurant. He sat at his favorite table.“Waiter！”called the Hippopotamus.“I will have the bean soup，the brussels sprouts（球芽甘藍(lán)），and the mashed potatoes（土豆泥）. Please hurry，I am enormously（極度） hungry tonight！”

In a short while，the waiter returned with the order. The Hippopotamus glared（掃視） down at his plate.

“Waiter，”he said，“do you call this a meal？These portions（份） are much too small. They would not satisfy a bird. I want a bathtub（澡盆） of bean soup，a basket of brussels sprouts，and a mountain of mashed potatoes. I tell you I have an APPETITE（胃口）.

The waiter went back into the kitchen. He returned carrying enough bean soup fill a bathtub，enough Brussels sprouts to fill a basket，and a mountain of mashed potatoes. In no time，the Hippopotamus had eaten every last morsel.

“Delicious（好吃，可口）！”said the Hippopotamus，as he dabbed（涂擦） his mouth with a napkin（餐巾） and prepared to leave.

To his surprise，he could not move. His stomach（胃），which had grown much larger，was caught between the table and the chair. He pulled and tugged（掙扎），but it was no use. He could not budge（搖動(dòng)）.

The hour grew late. The other customers in the restaurant finished their dinners and left. The cooks took off their aprons（圍裙） and put away their pots. The waiters cleared the dishes and turned out the lights. They all went home.

The Hippopotamus remained there，sitting forlornly（孤獨(dú)地） at the table.

“Perhaps I should not have eaten quite so many brussels sprouts，”he said，as he gazed（凝視） into the gloom（黑暗處） of the darkened restaurant. Occasionally（偶然），he burped（打嗝）.

Too much of anything often leaves one with a feeling of regret（懊悔）.