早晨上班路过公园的时候，经常会看到这样的场景：矮树的树枝上挂着各式各样的鸟笼，笼子里是各色鸟儿。鸟儿的主人们则聚在树的周围一起聊天儿、锻炼身体。伴着清晨的新鲜空气和鸟儿的鸣叫，一种回到大自然的感觉油然而生。
        这就是遛鸟。遛鸟在中国已经有很长时间的历史了。人们将家里养的鸟带到野外、公园等树木茂盛的地方去，给鸟儿提供接近自然的环境，在呼吸新鲜空气的同时，增加自家鸟儿与别的鸟儿接触和争鸣的机会。而对于人们来说，遛鸟同样也是一种健康活动。它能促使人们养成早起锻炼的好习惯，通过与鸟友们的交流，提高自己饲养鸟儿的技巧，同时在这个过程中，结识很多志同道合的好朋友。
        遛鸟的人一般都喜欢饲养画眉鸟，据说是因为画眉通人性，主人养得越久，鸟就与主人越"亲近"；而且画眉有着极高的"歌唱"本领，在中国古代，画眉的叫声被认为是大自然中最美丽的音符。如今，遛鸟的大多是老年人，在遛鸟的同时，他们可以聚在一起，快乐地享受退休后的生活，所以遛鸟也是很多老年朋友最喜爱的休闲方式。

Taking a Walk with a Pet Bird

When I walk past the park on the way to work, I always see such a scene: all kinds of birdcages are hanging on the lower branches of the trees, where birds of various feathers take the perch there. The owners are chatting around and doing the exercises. Breathing the clear and fresh air in the morning and listening to the chirping of the birds, you can feel the embrace of the nature.

This is what we called taking a walk with a pet bird. This activity has been rooted in China for quite a long time. People usually bring their pet birds in cages to the open field or the parks where there are a lot of trees, for the purpose of providing their birds with a more natural environment and offering the birds the opportunity of seeing and competing with their own kinds. As for people, it is also a very healthy sport, which can impel them to get up early and take exercise. Through walking with their birds, they are able to improve the skill in keeping birds and also enable them some chances to know more people with the similar interest.

The bird keepers are always keen to raise the thrush. It is said that this kind of bird is able to feel human's feelings. The longer it is kept, the closer it will be to its owner. Besides, the bird is very capable of "singing". In the ancient China, the chirp of this kind of bird was regarded as the most beautiful music in the natural world. At present, the elders are the main group of people who are taking a walk with their pet birds because they can gather together while walking, sharing the happy leisure time with the others of their age. Thus, it is one of the most favored activities for the senior people after their retirement.

• embrace [im´breis]   vt.&n.拥抱；采纳；信奉   (初中英语单词)
• healthy [´helθi]   a.健康的   (初中英语单词)
• enable [i´neibəl]   vt.使能够；赋予权力   (初中英语单词)
• capable [´keipəbəl]   a.有能力；能干的   (初中英语单词)
• hanging [´hæŋiŋ]   n.绞刑 a.悬挂着的   (高中英语单词)
• environment [in´vaiərənmənt]   n.郊区；周围；条件   (高中英语单词)
• offering [´ɔfəriŋ]   n.提供；礼物；捐献   (高中英语单词)
• seeing [si:iŋ]   see的现在分词 n.视觉   (高中英语单词)
• leisure [´leʒə]   n.空闲；悠闲；安定   (高中英语单词)
• senior [´si:niə]   a.年长的 n.前辈   (高中英语单词)
• thrush [θrʌʃ]   n.画眉鸟   (英语四级单词)
• retirement [ri´taiəmənt]   n.退休；撤退；幽静处   (英语四级单词)
• taking [´teikiŋ]   a.迷人的 n.捕获物   (英语六级单词)