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美国故事 SENEWS-2006-0916-Feature

时间:2007-05-14 01:16:42

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(单词翻译)

John Lyman stood on the steps of the summer house, watching his wife climbing into the car and drive off along the lake road. She was going to the village to get some boxes for his manuscripts1 and books. He looked unhappy, he had done little work on his book and the summer was now gone. “A wasted summer,” he had said to his wife.
“Not wasted, John,” she had said gently. “It’s been good for all of us.”
“But not good for my work,” he’d answered bitterly.

He put his pipe down, smiled weakly as his old dog Bingo came up to sniff2 it. The dog did this to be near him and he patted3 it on the head. Then he remembered his unfinished book and he asked his child hopefully “Isn’t there something else you would like to do instead of going sailing on our last day here?” The child stopped wiggling her toes in the hot dust and turned up her face and said with an unhappy look.

“Do we have to go home tomorrow, daddy?”
“Yes,” he answered, “school begins Monday you know?”
She moaned4. She looked small in her swimsuit and frail5. Bingo pushed against his hand and he thought about a number of things that he had had the dog longer than his child who was almost nine. And he remembered that Bingo had been his dog even before he met his wife Doris. She had been 18 then and was now 29. For 11 years, she had tried to be as old as himself and he had tried to be as young as she. Now any anger you wondered if their love was worth the years of trying and so often failing.

The child said, “Daddy, I can't think of anything else I would rather do than go sailing.”
This made him more angry. He was a poor sailor and had already upset the boat once. His wife was probably right, he thought. She said he was always thinking so much about his book on early grey card that he let the wind and the boat get the better of him.

And so, after he agreed to take out the boat it happened again today. He was so troubled with the lost of his time but he let a gust6 of wind turned his light boat over. He went under and was terrified. Not because of his own safety but that of the child. Usually she swam well but it was different today. In a panic, he broke through the surface of the water and looked wildly about for her. He saw the boat first. It had swum to the right, its red painted side glistening7 in the sun. Then to his left, he saw her bright hair. In her terror8 she was fighting the water, gasping9 and screaming. He called out to calm her and swam to her. She came up sobbing10. He put an arm around her and held her close. She clung11 to him like a thin, frightened animal. He could feel her terror who was like something alive and in singing. Suddenly he wanted to shout for help though he knew there was no one to hear, and he wanted to fight against the water with all his strength. But he forced himself to keep calm.

“Don’t cry,” * said gently, “we’re all right.” He stayed in the same spot, moving his legs up and down in the water to keep afloat. He held her close talking quietly, at last she heard him. When her arms loosened12, he laughed and said, “We’ll never hear the last of this from mother.” She laughed too and asked, “Where’s the boat?” He finally saw it far to the right. “It’s running away from us.” he said.

Alone he might have caught up with it and let it carry them to safety. Lifting his head he saw how far they were from shore. Almost half a mile! Again he became tense, frightened, but he said, “Thank you for hanging on while I swam.” She laughed again and put her arms around his neck. She seemed liked it first and he told himself he could make it. Swam one hundred strokes13, he kept saying to himself, then float and rest awhile.

After the third rest period she seemed to have grown surprisingly heavy. He was too old for something like this, he thought. Now he had lost count of the rest periods. He felt physically14 spent unable to make it to shore. He’d always cared more for books than sports and now he wondered if he had not spent too many hours of his life by himself, studying, writing, teaching15, too many hours of wanting nothing more than his pipe, his dog and his books. He remembered how Doris had come into one of his classes, a girl of 18, the oldest of a large family. A fresh lovely girl with laughter in her eyes.

One day he found her on a college grounds, gently touching16 Bingo and said he was a beautiful dog. Really Bingo was a big ugly brute17. Doris said that Bingo had character. He laughed and told her what a lazy, no good Bingo was. And then she laughed too. Listening he knew that she was what he wanted. Then came a wedding day, she said she would give him a houseful of noisy sons, they would make him forget his books and filling with laughter. The first was to be named John Junior. But she succeeded in giving him only a tiny daughter who arrived too early and was given only a small chance to live. But she lived and they named her Joanna and called her Jonnie. Now he was swimming to shore with her, while a great weakness filled every inch of his body. He felt there was little hope, he was tiring fast. He wondered what it would be like to die at nine and at forty. He wondered what would become of old Bingo, and the pipe he had left on the front steps of this house. He wondered how long it would be before Doris would laugh again, and he knew how foolish it was to be angry because of book had not been written.

“Daddy,” Jonnie asked, “is our boat lost for good?”
“Oh no, it, it wash ashore18.”
“And will we sail it next summer?”
“Of course, and probably upset it again.”
She laughed and he swam on. The next time he painfully lifted his head, he saw they were quite close to land. For as far as he was concerned, it didn’t matter. He had reached the point where he could no longer move, not an inch.
“Now,” he said smiling, “I’ll wish you to the house, I’ll come to him and then give you that much of start, no looking back.”

Excitedly she swam on on her own. He closed his eyes. His feet and legs were like lead pulling him down. Slowly the water covered his chin, his mouth and then surprisingly, his feet touched bottom. At last he pushed forward on his stomach along the dry hot sand.

“I won!” Jonnie cried as she ran back toward19 where her father lay, “I’ve been to the house already.” He sat up slowly to look at her, funny looking means, thin arms and legs. He had been like that when he was a boy of nine. Blonde hair, blue eyes, that part of her was Doris’ gift. Then he knew that if he had drowned, it would not have mattered much. But if Jonnie had drowned, he and Doris would have been lost and the whole future would have been changed. Suddenly he knew why he himself had been born into this world. Not to write a book, but to father and protect this one child.

“That comes mother!” Jonnie cried and went racing20 away.
Somehow he was able to get to his feet and followed.
“Daddy and I upset the boat.” He heard Jonnie say laughingly, “then we swam a race to shore and I won!”
Doris' shocked eyes met his immediately without being told, she seemed to know what had almost happen to him and Jonnie. She sat down as if her knees had suddenly turned to rubber. He dropped down behind her and took her hand in his.
“You were right,” he said gently, “It has been a good summer.” And when she stopped shaking, he kissed her.

You have been listening to the story "Upset". It was written by Frank21 ?. Copyright22 by Family Circle incorporated23. All rights reserved. Your storyteller was Walter Guthrie. Listen again next week at this same time for another American story told in Special English on the Voice of America. This is Shirley Griffith
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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 manuscripts d25cf83a427d69b9c7fa1f3c8bbe94d3     
手稿( manuscript的名词复数 ); 原稿; 底稿; 手写本
参考例句:
  • The old librarian illuminated some old books and manuscripts. 这个老图书馆员把一些古书和旧抄稿加上各种装饰。
  • At his death he left a great mass of undigested manuscripts. 他去世时留下大量尚未整理的文稿。
2 sniff PF7zs     
vi.嗅…味道;抽鼻涕;对嗤之以鼻,蔑视
参考例句:
  • The police used dogs to sniff out the criminals in their hiding - place.警察使用警犬查出了罪犯的藏身地点。
  • When Munchie meets a dog on the beach, they sniff each other for a while.当麦奇在海滩上碰到另一条狗的时候,他们会彼此嗅一会儿。
3 patted 6da7c23c1ea46b18fa6e7a496a795c14     
v.轻拍( pat的过去式和过去分词 );拍成,拍至;表扬,称赞(某人/自己)
参考例句:
  • She patted the dog on the head. 她轻轻地拍着狗的头。
  • He leaned forward and patted me on the shoulder. 他向前倾着身子并拍我的肩膀。 来自《简明英汉词典》
4 moaned 10b26e41ea09a23927a91dc447f839a8     
v.呻吟,悲叹( moan的过去式和过去分词 );抱怨;发出萧萧声
参考例句:
  • Facer moaned out a sound and then closed his eyes. 费塞呻吟了一声,然后就闭上了眼睛。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The sick child moaned a little, and then fell asleep. 那个生病的孩子呻吟了一会儿就睡着了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
5 frail yz3yD     
adj.身体虚弱的;易损坏的
参考例句:
  • Mrs. Warner is already 96 and too frail to live by herself.华纳太太已经九十六岁了,身体虚弱,不便独居。
  • She lay in bed looking particularly frail.她躺在床上,看上去特别虚弱。
6 gust q5Zyu     
n.阵风,突然一阵(雨、烟等),(感情的)迸发
参考例句:
  • A gust of wind blew the front door shut.一阵大风吹来,把前门关上了。
  • A gust of happiness swept through her.一股幸福的暖流流遍她的全身。
7 glistening glistening     
adj.闪耀的,反光的v.湿物闪耀,闪亮( glisten的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • Her eyes were glistening with tears. 她眼里闪着晶莹的泪花。
  • Her eyes were glistening with tears. 她眼睛中的泪水闪着柔和的光。 来自《用法词典》
8 terror dI9z3     
n.恐怖;可怖的人(事)
参考例句:
  • We were in mortal terror of being found out. 我们非常害怕被发现。
  • That guy is a proper terror. 那家伙真是讨厌。
9 gasping gasping     
adj. 气喘的, 痉挛的 动词gasp的现在分词
参考例句:
  • He was gasping for breath. 他在喘气。
  • "Did you need a drink?""Yes, I'm gasping!” “你要喝点什么吗?”“我巴不得能喝点!”
10 sobbing df75b14f92e64fc9e1d7eaf6dcfc083a     
<主方>Ⅰ adj.湿透的
参考例句:
  • I heard a child sobbing loudly. 我听见有个孩子在呜呜地哭。
  • Her eyes were red with recent sobbing. 她的眼睛因刚哭过而发红。
11 Clung Clung     
v.附着于( cling的过去式和过去分词 );抓紧或抱住;坚持;依恋,依附于
参考例句:
  • The Prime Minister clung to his job like a limpet, despite calls for him to resign. 首相不顾有人要求他辞职,死赖在他的职位上不下台。
  • She clung to the hope that her son was not dead. 她抱定儿子并没有死的希望不放。 来自《简明英汉词典》
12 loosened 8502d286c37ccf10dda7366a7e3d4783     
v.解开( loosen的过去式和过去分词 );放松;松弛;(使)放松
参考例句:
  • He has loosened the soil up with a fork. 他用耙松过土了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The new policies loosened up foreign trade. 新政策使对外贸易有了更大的灵活性。 来自《简明英汉词典》
13 strokes 0b2313f3d577e1821f71bc26766a8c0a     
中风; a sudden loss of consciousness resulting when the rupture or occlusion of a blood vessel leads to oxygen lack in the brain.; (游泳或划船的)划( stroke的名词复数 ); 中风; (打、击等的)一下; (成功的)举动
参考例句:
  • Apply the paint thickly in even strokes. 涂颜料要厚,笔画要匀。
  • To improve your tennis strokes you try using a different grip. 为了提高你网球的击球法,你试试用另一种握拍方法。
14 physically iNix5     
adj.物质上,体格上,身体上,按自然规律
参考例句:
  • He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服,心绪也很乱。
  • Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。
15 teaching ngEziT     
n.教学,执教,任教,讲授;(复数)教诲
参考例句:
  • We all agree in adopting the new teaching method. 我们一致同意采取新的教学方法。
  • He created a new system of teaching foreign languages.他创造了一种新的外语教学体系。
16 touching sg6zQ9     
adj.动人的,使人感伤的
参考例句:
  • It was a touching sight.这是一幅动人的景象。
  • His letter was touching.他的信很感人。
17 brute GSjya     
n.野兽,兽性
参考例句:
  • The aggressor troops are not many degrees removed from the brute.侵略军简直象一群野兽。
  • That dog is a dangerous brute.It bites people.那条狗是危险的畜牲,它咬人。
18 ashore tNQyT     
adv.在(向)岸上,上岸
参考例句:
  • The children got ashore before the tide came in.涨潮前,孩子们就上岸了。
  • He laid hold of the rope and pulled the boat ashore.他抓住绳子拉船靠岸。
19 toward on6we     
prep.对于,关于,接近,将近,向,朝
参考例句:
  • Suddenly I saw a tall figure approaching toward the policeman.突然间我看到一个高大的身影朝警察靠近。
  • Upon seeing her,I smiled and ran toward her. 看到她我笑了,并跑了过去。
20 racing 1ksz3w     
n.竞赛,赛马;adj.竞赛用的,赛马用的
参考例句:
  • I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
  • The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。
21 frank JibxK     
adj.坦白的,直率的,真诚的
参考例句:
  • A frank discussion can help to clear the air.坦率的谈论有助于消除隔阂。
  • She is frank and outgoing.她很爽朗。
22 copyright XZRyV     
n.版权,著作权
参考例句:
  • He retained the copyright of his book.他保留此书的著作权。
  • This company has a proprietorship of the copyright.这家公司拥有版权所有权。
23 incorporated dqQz8G     
a.结合的,并为一体的
参考例句:
  • Many of your suggestions have been incorporated in the plan. 你的很多建议已纳入计划中。
  • These conditions must be expressly incorporated into the contract of employment. 这些条件都必须明确地写进雇佣合同之中。

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