absence→★absent/present



towel



eldest



overnight



register



protest



milk→★milk



scream



swallow



cease



laundry



single→★single



uncertain→★certainly



postman→★post



vanish



uncertainty→★certainly



consent



childhood→★child



cheerful



postgraduate



mystery



enclose



handwriting



spark→★spark



memory→★memory



overwhelm



scrape



blaze



palm



destiny



promise



shelter



whisper



pillow



fragrance



lighten



rhyme



rainfall



sparkle→★spark



year



disguise



defeat



stale→★still



misery→★miserable



warmth



sunshine



set



marry



graduation



expansion



surface



elegant



scatter



concern→★concern



phrase



imprison



rainbow



bond



endow



powerful



remove



tedious



thrust



snail



decline



shrink



forehead



crawl



chores



quit



finally



rim



skid



client



involve



ready



favo(u)rite→★favour



charming



preparation



resistance



curiosity



shopping



utter



absorb→★absorb



helpful



suspicion



stuff



response



approval



volcano



rib



turn



alter→★alter



logic→★dialogue/logic



penetrate



enthusiasm→★enthusiasm



eclipse



emotion



mechanical



span



presence



mist



dissatisfaction→★satisfy



passionate



abruptly



murmur



译文:



Unit 4 Big Tom………………………………………………55



大个子汤姆



我至今怀念与同事大个子汤姆一起的时光，他身体强壮却从不盛气凌人，有时候冒出的奇特想法让人莫名其妙却又无法拒绝。然而，一次随意的决定使他遭受了生命危险……



Of all the males in our company's dormitory, I felt the most affection for Tom. He was a genius, I thought, but the other guys took him for a nut. He came from far away, and at first had a strong Spanish accent. Now, after a year with the company, he spoke English very well. But his English accent had an exaggerated precision that the other guys didn't like. In the crude environment of the dormitory, Tom's accent seemed artificial. But he was a big man, a giant, and strong as an ox, and the others feared him and left him alone.



I on the other hand had a weak constitution. I couldn't digest any real food and lived on little more than coffee. My arms and legs were as thin as stems. And what work did I do there, you may well ask. I was chief garbage man for the dormitory.



Our company had a big project to build a reinforced concretereservoir out in a suburb surrounded by hills. At night a portion of the project was closed to us by means of a big square gate made of brass. One cold evening I was depositing the garbage from supper behind our dormitory when I saw a torch and the shape of a man passing through the grass gate. I walked over.



"I knew it was you," I said to Tom.



"It's open," he said. "Shall we go in?"



"Don't you know we shouldn't?" I said. "You still haven't adjusted to the company."



"Adjust?" he said. "I'd rather quit. Come. What are you afraid of? Don't you want to investigate this portion?" He knew I did. Already it seemed inevitable that I would to with him. I only feared that the torch would be noticeable on the TV monitor of the chief watchman.



"Turn off the torch," I said, and we walked through the brass square gate. Tom and I penetrated all the way to the crane, and no watchman had yet pursued us. This giant crane was used for moving and placing the reinforced concrete blocks. In the dark we recognized it by its shape-an immense pillar of zigzag rods. At the top of it, we knew, at the peak, would be the flag. And far over our heads, up in the dark sky, would be the crane's giant arm. On the arm was the banner that we saw everyday, with the letters ABC, the initial letters of our company's name. We had ABC written on our shirts, too, and on the chairs and beds with which our dormitory was furnished.



"Let's go up!" said Tom. I laughed-but Tome had spoken in earnest. Strong as he was, he really had no concept of authority.



"Tom, you are a nut!" I said, wanting to show him that I was reluctant. But in the end he convinced me, and we mounted the ladder to the lift. There were two buttons, a red one and a green one. I pressed the latter, just to see if the lift might be operational. It was. I pressed the red button and stopped it. Tome got in. I pressed the green one again and we rose and rose and finally reached the top. We were at the peak of the pillar, just underneath the flag. Even in the dark we were close enough to see it. Before us the crane's giant arm led of like a road into the night. Its rods and all zigzag, made me feel that over there would be, I saw, a square gate, some garbage and a dormitory. But no. Off the end of that zigzag road really would be nothing but dark night. The geometry of the crane scared me.



"Let's walk out to the banner!"



To the banner? Oh, no. This was too much.



"I want to see the ABC!" said Tome. "Come on!" why was his voice so urgent? What did the want that ABC banner for?



"Tom, you are too bold," I said. "You really have no concept….." But he had set off. I was very scared, but somehow rose to the challenge and went with him. It became a contest: who would be the first one to touch the long banner? I was halfway along the arm when I heard the water of the reservoir, far underneath us. It was then that I remembered that the chief crane operator, before stopping his work for the day, would always swing the giant arm so that it projected out over the water. Now I was really scared. I held on to a rod. I could feel the coffee I had drunk could and undigested inside me. I did not have Tom's ox-like constitution.



"Tom!" I said. I did not possess hi boldness, and not his urgency.



"You can't quit now!" Said Tom. But I could not move. I was trapped.



Tom had reached the banner. He was a dark shape, loosening the knots that held the banner to the rods.



"I possess the ABC!" he said, in that precise English of his. The dark shape on the arm put a thumb up to show me that he had got what he wanted. He put his other hand on what he thought was a rod, but it was the wire that would shock him.



They said later that the nuts on the box that surrounded the wire were loose and had come unscrewed(螺丝钉旋松的). The box had fallen away, and the wire was exposed.



Tome never panicked. He looked at me as if I were far away. But his legs would not hold him up. Wrapped in the banner, he fell, like a baby bird from a nest. It was I who panicked, when I heard him hit and vanish underneath the water of the reservoir. Maybe his fall had not been fatal, but would my beloved Tom now drown? It was possible.



I began to cal for help.



We spent an anxious fortnight in the dormitory. While the others would talk about his vitality(生命力), I stared at jeans and socks of the vanishing nut. The dorm was a different place without his precise English. An X-ray scan had revealed that he would need an operation. And of course the big ox had to recover from the exposure to the cold water. There was a mention in the media of Tom's shock and fall, and the TV guys were going to come and see what we were doing at the reservoir project, until their investigation was canceled. But the authorities did investigate our company. Their investigation revealed that the square gate had been left open, and the box surrounding the wire had come off.



The company reinforced the square gate with more brass, and put a new box back onto the arm, screwing its nuts tightly. They tightened up the knots of the new banner, and even put anew banner all down the crane's pillar, this latter one having not only the initials ABC but all the letters of the name of the suburb. And they put a bigger flag on the crane.



The company enhanced the authority of the chief watchman. Now we had to sign in when were came back to the dormitory, and sign out. Even when I took out the garbage in the evening, I had to sign in and out! Besides, they furnish their chief garbage man with a torch in case I should see any shapes of people.



注释:



male→★male



dormitory



affection



genius



guy



Spanish



accent



exaggerate



precision→★decide



crude



environment



artificial



giant



fear→★fear



constitution



digest



stem



garbage



project



reinforce→★force



concrete



reservoir



suburb



surround



portion



means



brass



deposit



torch



adjust



investigate



inevitable



noticeable



crane



pursue



use



recognize



immense



pillar



zigzag



rod



peak



banner



initial



furnish



earnest



concept



authority



reluctant



convince



mount



latter



might



operational→★operate



underneath



geometry→★geography



urgent→★urge



bold



somehow



challenge



contest→★test



operator→★operate



possess



trap



loosen→★lose



knot



precise



wire



loose



expose→★position/thesis



panic



nest



fatal



beloved



fortnight



X-ray



scan



reveal



recover



exposure→★position/thesis



media



cancel



screw



enhance



besides



译文:



Unit 5 Jason and Jeff………………………………………71



父子情深



生命是最令人留恋的，同样，热爱生命的人是最值得纪念的。杰夫和詹森父子俩的感情令人感动，而詹森的生命活力也令人赞叹……



The colorful falling leaves rustle(发出沙沙声)through the trees on this brisk October morning in 1990.Jason and his sister Joanna get into the car and drive to school. Jason is driving this morning. He has just received his permit and is very anxious to start driving on his own. His sister Joanna is one year older than him and is showing him the specific points of driving, as if in a workshop. Today, she decides that he should drive to school. He takes the wheel and proceeds slowly down the back roads to Hill High School. These are backcountry(边远地区)roads and the twists cause Jason to drive slowly and cautiously(慎重地).He takes each turn with a bit of bravado(虚张声势)and his sister teases him that he is becoming a "coward" and tells him to speed up a bit. They will be late for school if he doesn't step on it! He presses the gas pedal down and accelerates but finds it difficult to tame the steering wheel of the mobile locomotive. His sister tells him to watch the road attentively, but he turns to tell her a witty(机智的)remake and doesn't see the embankment(路基)ahead of him. Just a second of distraction(分心)rotating the wheel, he sending the car down to the embankment, and the car roils over and over and hits a tree. Jason's head hits the wind shield and he is trapped between that and the steering wheel. He can't breathe and is losing consciousness(意识).Joanna tries desperately to free him, but is unable(不能的)to. She does the only thing possible-that is to escape out of the open window and find help… fast!



Ambulances arrive in a few minutes but Jason is unconscious. They have to extricate(救出)him with the "Jaws of Life"(救生颚(商标名)).He is taken to the hospital and for three days he lies between life and death. He is breathing only with the assistance of a respirator(呼吸器).That has limited his brain activity. The doctors take Jeff aside and notify him that Jason has extensive brain damage and that there is no real hope that Jason would be normal again. Jeff must make a decision whether to turn off the respirator and let Jason die in peace. He thinks that it's the best decision but it is also the most painful one he has ever made in his life.



Jason and Jeff shared a durable bond. They did everything together from the time he was born. When they had a free moment, they would be golfing, skiing, playing badminton. They formed a bond of love that remains even beyond the boundaries of life and death. It is an extraordinary relationship between father and son.



Jason lived only sixteen years but he did so much in his short time on Earth. He was very academic, a musician, an athlete, a golf fanatic, liked archeology(考古学)and was a lover of life. He had many, many friends and thirsted for living, which was quite unlike anyone I had witnessed. He had the kind of boyish charm and he lit up a room when he entered it. He had a beautiful: smile and kind words for everyone. I have never seen him get angry but he was always cheerful and intelligent. I was Jason's godmother(教母)and when he was baptized(受洗礼)in 1974,he had the coolest priest. The priest had long hair and sandals. I still smile when I think about that priest. Jason cried when I held him for the blessing(祈祷)of the water but not for very long. The ceremony only took a few moments, but looking down at Jason, I knew then, that this was indeed a special child. It turned out my impressions were correct.



Jeff was an enthusiastic, devoted and a superb father to Jason and Joanna. He made sure that he spent a lot of time with his children. Time seemed to be of the utmost importance to him as well as having fun. He always enjoyed life and was a bit of a risk taker. Golf was a pastime that Jason and Jeff shared. It was almost religions. They would even attempt to golf when there was accumulation of snow on the golf course. Jason would just put his gloves on and laugh. "I must golf!" he would say, "I love it!"



One year earlier, Jason was pursuing another kind of sports: Skiing. He liked the skiing attitude. A few of his friends drove up to Sugarloaf Mountain and skied for the whole day. You know, Sugarloaf has a wonderful mountain slope for skiing. Jason spent the day back and forth along the mountain skiing trails for many runs. Once sunset was illuminating the snow and there was a group of trees ahead. The sun blinded him for a second and he tried to avoid the trees but ran into. The ski pole plunged right into his head and fractured his skull. There was a gush of blood on his head but Jason did his best to slide down the mountain. He drove himself to the emergency room, where the doctors scratch their heads wondering how he was injured. But he was lucky to be alive. A few days later, Jason was back on the ski slopes like nothing happened at all. He was just that kind of young man. He overcame the misfortune and lived for exactly one extra year. Jeff told this story at Jason's funeral. His eyes filled up with tears of love every time he mentioned Jason's name.



Jason's bedroom is a testimony to his personality and his life. He has a collection of model airplanes. On the piano there is still the music of the song that was Jason's favorite of his time, "Chariots(战车)of Fire". Jason was a very outgoing(对人友好的)young man. He was an accomplished student and a sportsman. Jason had lots of merits and had many, many friends who loved him. I loved Jason very much. Jeff and Jason share a bond of affection that defies death.



Today, Jeff's home is open to anyone who has a thirst for living. He loves to have fun. He isn't the one to sit still and let life pass him by. He wants to help young people develop their potentials. He is a member of a mutual aid association. He set up a college fund for the study of music and it would be available to any eligible student who shares Jason's philosophy of being outgoing and hardworking. It is called the Jason Music Scholarship Fund. It is his way of carrying on Jason's musical dreams. Now Jason rests by a beautiful river in a bed of roses. Jeff visits him every week, along with his wife.



注释:



brisk



specific



workshop



proceed



twist



tease



coward



gas→★gas



pedal



accelerate



tame



steer



mobile→★motor



locomotive→★motor



attentively



witty



remark→★mark



rotate



shield



desperately



unable



escape



ambulance



unconscious



jaw



assistance



limit→★limit



activity



aside



notify



extensive



painful→★pain



durable→★during



golf



ski



badminton



remain



boundary



extraordinary



relationship



academic