THIS single stick, which you now behold ingloriously lying in that neglected corner, I once knew in a flourishing state in a forest.

• 参考译文：你看这根扫帚把，现在灰溜溜地躺在无人注意的角落，我曾在树林里碰见过，当时它风华正茂，树液充沛，枝叶繁茂。