Before you were born,
在你出生之前
Amsterdam was captivated by a flower.
阿姆斯特丹人痴迷一种花
The tulip.
郁金香
They came from far away, in the East, and were so rare and beautiful, for people lost their senses in wanting to own them.
它们来自遥远的东方如此稀有和美丽 所以人们发狂地想拥有它们
Rich and poor were spending and borrowing money to join the trade in bulbs, which were going up in price all the time.
富人花钱 穷人借钱争相购入郁金香的球茎导致花价一路上涨
None more so than the rare striped tulips that were called breakers.
某些罕见的条纹郁金香被称为碎色者
A new breaker came from nowhere, like an act of God, and it changed people's lives.
这种新的碎色者扮演了上帝 改变了人们的生活
A white flower with a God-given crimson stripe turned our lives upside down, mine and my mistress Sophia's.
一朵白色的花 有上帝赐予的深红条纹颠覆了我们的生活我们 包括我和我女主人索菲亚