新概念英语经典美文

莉落

  新概念英语经典美文(1)

  As a little boy, there was nothing I liked better than Sunday aftemoons at my grandfather's farm in western Pennsylvania. Surrounded by miles of winding stonewalls, the house and barn provided endless hours of fun for a city kid like me. I was used to parlors neat as a pin that seemed to whisper, "Not to be touched!"

  我小时候最喜欢在爷爷的农场里度过每个星期天的下午。爷爷的农场在宾夕法尼亚州西部。农场四周都围上了绵延几英里的石墙。房子和谷仓给我这个城市男孩带来了无穷的快乐时光。我习惯了城里整洁的客厅,似乎在低声说:“不要摸!”。

  I can still remember one afternoon when I was eight years old. Since my first visit to the farm, I'd wanted more than anything to be allowed to climb the stonewalls surrounding the property. My parents would never approve. The walls were old; some stones were missing, others loose and crumbling. Still, my yearning to scramble across those walls grew so strong. One spring afternoon, I summoned all my courage and entered the living room, where the adults had gathered after dinner.

  我仍能记得我8岁那年一天下午的情景。因为我第一次去农场,所以我很想上那农场四周的那些石墙。可我的父母是绝不会同意的。这些墙年深日 ,有的石头不见了,有的石头松动倒塌了。然而,我渴望这些墙的欲望非常强烈。一个春天的下午,我鼓足勇气,走进客厅,大人们午饭后都聚在这里。

  "I, uh, I want to climb the stonewalls," I said hesitantly. Everyone looked up. "Can I climb the stonewalls?" Instantly a chorus went up from the women in the room. "Heavens, no!" they cried in dismay. "You'll hurt yourself!" I wasn't too disappointed; the response was just as I'd expected. But before I could leave the room, I was stopped by my grandfather' s booming voice. "Hold on just a minute," I heard him say, "Let the boy climb the stonewalls. He has to learn to do things for himself."

  “我,呃,我想爬那石墙,”我犹豫地说道。大家都抬起头。“我能去爬那些石墙吗?”屋里的女人们马上齐声叫了起来。“天哪,不能!”她们惊慌地叫首,“你会伤着自己的!”我并没有太失望,我早就预料会是这样的回答。但还没等我离开客厅,爷爷低沉的声音拦住了我。“等一会儿,”我听到他说“让孩子爬那些石墙吧。他必须学会自己做一些事。”

  "Scoot," he said to me with a wink, "and come and see me when you get back." For the next two and a half hours I climbed those old walls and had the time of my life. Later I met with my grandfather to tell him about my adventure. I'll never forget what he said. "Fred," he said, grinning, "you made this day a special day just by being yourself. Always remember, there's only one person in this whole world like you, and I like you exactly as you are."

  “快走吧,”他对我眨眨眼说。“你回来后找我。”接下来的两个半小时,我爬上了这些古老的石墙,别提有多肝硬变。后来,我把自己冒险经历告诉了爷爷。我永远也不会忘记他说过的话。“弗雷德,”他咧着嘴笑道。“你做了一回自己,你让这个日子因此而变得不同凡响。永远记住,整个世界只有一个你,而且我喜欢真实的你。”

  Many years have passed since then, and today I host the television program Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, seen by millions of children throughout America. There have been changes over the years, but one thing remains the same: my message to children at the end of almost every visit, "There's only one person in this whole world like you, and people can like you exactly as you are."

  许多年过去了,现在我主持的电视节目《罗杰斯先生的街坊四邻》,全美国几百万儿童都会收看。几年过后,节目已经发生了一些变化,但有一点没变:几乎每期节日后我都会传递给孩子这样一个信息,“这个世界上只有一个你,人们都喜欢真实的你。”

  新概念英语经典美文(2)

  Daddy just didn’t know how to show love. It was Mom who held the family together. He just went to work every day and came home; she’d have a list of sins we’d committed and he’d scold us about them.

  爸爸根本不知道怎样表达爱。把这个家维系在一起的人是妈妈。爸爸天天去上班,回家,然后是妈妈向他数落我们所做的一连串错事,爸爸再为了这些事把我们骂一顿。

  Once when I stole a candy bar, he made me take it back and tell the man I stole it and that I’d pay for it. But it was Mom who understood I was just a kid.

  有一次我偷了一根棒棒糖。爸爸硬是要我送回去,还要我告诉卖糖的人是我偷了糖,并说我愿意帮他拆箱开包作为赔偿。但妈妈却理解我,她知道我只不过是个孩子。

  I broke my leg once on the playground swing and it was Mom who held me in her arms all the way to the hospital. Dad pulled the car right up to the door of the emergency room and when they asked him to move it saying the space was reserved for emergency vehicles, He shouted, “What do you think this is? A tour bus?”

  再有一次,我在操场荡秋千摔坏了腿,一路抱着我到医院的人是妈妈。爸爸将车正好停在急诊室门口。因为那儿是专供急救车停靠的,医院里的人就叫我爸爸把车开走。爸爸大声吼叫起来:“你以为这是什么车?难道是旅游车吗?”

  At my birthday parties, Dad always seemed sort of out of place, He just busied himself blowing up balloons, setting up tables, and running errands, it was Mom who carried the cake with the candles on it for me to blow out.

  在我的生日聚会上,爸爸总显得有点不得其所。他不是忙于吹气球,就是摆桌子,或做些跑腿的活儿。将插着蜡烛的生日蛋糕捧进来让我吹灭的人总是妈妈。

  When I leaf through picture albums, people always ask, “What does your Dad took like?” “Who knows? He was always fiddling around with the camera taking everyone else’s picture. I must have a zillion pictures of Mom and me smiling together.”

  我随便翻阅相册时,别人总会问“你爸爸长什么模样?”这还真说不出。他总是摆弄着相机为别人拍照。我和妈妈在一起微笑的照片一定多得都数不清了。

  新概念英语经典美文(3)

  A friend of mine named Paul received an automobile from his brother as Christmas present. On Christmas eve, when Paul came out of his office, a street urchin was looking around the shining new car, admiring it.

  我有个朋友,保罗,在圣诞节那天收到了一份来自他哥哥的礼物,一辆轿车。在圣诞前夜,当保罗从他的办公室走出来时,一个街头顽童正围着他的新车打转地看,非常羡慕。

  "Is this your car, Mister?" he said.

  “这是您的汽车吗,先生?”他说。

  Paul nodded, "My brother gave it to me for Christmas."

  保罗点了点头,“我哥哥给我的圣诞礼物。

  The boy was astounded, "You mean your brother gave it to you, and didn't cost you anything?"

  小男孩诧异了,“你是说你哥哥给你的,不用花你一分钱?”

  "Boy, I wish…" he hesitated.

  “兄弟,我希望…”他迟疑了。

  Of course Paul knew what he was going to wish for. He was going to wish he has a brother like that. But what the lad said jarred Paull all the way down his heels.

  保罗当然清楚他希望什么,他希望他也有个那样的哥哥。但这个小家伙说的'话,使保罗大吃了一惊。

  "I wish," the boy went on, "that I could be a brother like that."

  “我希望,”小男孩继续说道,“我可以做一个那样的哥哥。”

  Paul looked at the boy in astonishment, then inpulsivly he added, "Would you like to take a ride in my car?"

  保罗惊奇地看着小男孩,然后激动地说了句,“你想不想做我的车去兜兜风?”

  "Oh, yes. I'd love that."

  “哦,想!我喜欢!”

  After a short ride, the boy turned his eyes aglow, said, "Mister, would you mind driving in front of my house?"

  跑了一小段路后,小男孩眼光水灵闪闪地说道,“先生,您可以把车开到我家门前吗?”

  Paul smiled a little. He thought he knew what the lad wanted. He wanted to show his neighbours that he could ride home in a big automobile. But Paul was wrong again.

  保罗微微一笑。他觉得他知道这个小家伙想要干什么,他想要向他的邻居炫耀他可以坐一辆大汽车回家。但是,保罗又一次想错了。

  "Would you stop at those with two steps?" the boy asked.

  “您可以在那有两个台阶的房子前停下吗?” 小男孩问道。

  He ran up stairs. Then in a little while, Paul heard him coming back, but he was not coming fast. He was carrying his little crippled brother. He set him down on the bottom step. Then a sort of squeezed up against him and pointed to the car.

  他跑着上楼去了。然后一小会儿,保罗听到他回来的脚步声,但他没再用跑的了。保罗看见他正搀扶着他的跛脚的弟弟,他扶着他坐在最底层的台阶上,然后拥抱着他,指着这部车。

  "There she is, buddy, just like I told you upstairs. His brother gave it to him for Christmas and didn't cost hime a cent. And some day, I'm gonna give you one just like it. Then you can see for yourself all the prettiest things in the windows that I was trying to tell you about."

  “小弟,那就是我在楼上跟你说的那部车。他哥哥给他的圣诞礼物,不用花他一分钱。将来某天我也要给你一部像那样的车,那样你就可以自己去看我以前尽力想让你知道的那些窗边的圣诞饰品了。”

  Paul got off and lifted the lad into the front of his car. The shinning eyed old brother crimbed in beside him. And three of them began a memorable holiday ride.

  保罗下车把跛脚的小孩抱上了车的前座,他的眼睛水灵灵的哥哥爬上了车,坐到了他旁边。然后他们三个开始一段令人难忘的旅程。

  That Christmas eve, Paul learned what Jesus meant, when he said, "It is more blessed to give than to receive…"

  那个圣诞前夜,保罗收获了很多,他真正体会了耶稣所说的那句话,“施舍比接受更有福…”