架桥

英语学习杂志 2013-03-15 15:54

分享到

 

一对和睦相处的兄弟之间爆发了矛盾,当推土机铲平草地,开辟出一条小溪,两人的矛盾似乎已无可挽回。此时,一个木匠出现了……

架桥

Get Flash Player

By Dee Tressler

瑜箬 选注

Once upon a time, two brothers, who lived on adjoining farms, fell into conflict. It was the first serious rift in 40 years of farming side by side, sharing machinery, and trading labour and goods as needed without a hitch.

Then the long collaboration fell apart. It began with a small misunderstanding and it grew into a major difference, and finally it exploded into an exchange of bitter words followed by weeks of silence.

Very early one morning there was a knock on the older brother’s door. He opened it to find a man with a carpenter’s toolbox. “I’m looking for a few days’ work,” he said. “Perhaps you would have a few small jobs here and there. Could I help you?”

“Well as it happens there is,” said the older brother.

“I do have a job for you. Look across the creek at that farm. That’s my neighbour, in fact, it’s my younger brother. Last week there was a meadow between us and he took his bulldozer to the river levee and now there is a creek between us. Well, he may have done this to spite me, but I’ll go him one better. See that pile of lumber by the barn? I want you to build me a fence ... a 2-metre-high fence, so I won’t need to see him or his place anymore.

The carpenter said, “I think I understand the situation. Show me the nails and the post-hole digger and I’ll be able to do a job that pleases you.”

The older brother had to go to town for supplies , so he helped the carpenter get the materials ready and then he was off for the day. The carpenter worked hard all that day measuring, sawing, digging and nailing. About sunset when the older brother returned, the carpenter had just finished his job. The older brother’s eyes opened wide and his jaw dropped .

There was no fence there at all; instead there was a bridge... a bridge stretching from one side of the creek to the other. A fine piece of work handrails and all—and the neighbour, his younger brother was coming across the bridge, his hand outstretched.

“You are quite a fellow to build this bridge after all I’ve said and done,” he said.

The two brothers then met in the middle of the bridge, taking each other’s hand and embraced ... their conflict was at an end. They then turned to see the carpenter hoist his toolbox on his shoulder.

“No, wait please stay a few days. I’ve a lot of other projects for you,” said the older brother.

“I’d love to stay on,” the carpenter said, “but, I have many more bridges to build.”

Vocabulary

1. adjoining: 毗邻的;conflict: 冲突。

2. 40年来,他们并肩耕耘,共用机械设备,需要时交换劳力和物品,相处得非常融洽,这是他们之间第一次产生裂痕。rift: 分裂,不和;hitch: 小障碍,小故障。

3. collaboration: 合作,协作;fall apart: 破裂。

4. 最初的时候(他们之间)只有一个小误会,逐渐发展为大的分歧,最终爆发成了恶语相向,再之后他们几个星期都互不理睬。explode: 爆发;bitter: 充满敌意的。

5. carpenter: 木匠;toolbox: 工具箱。

6. creek: 小溪。

7. meadow: 草地;bulldozer: 推土机;levee: 堤岸。

8. spite: (故意做坏事来)伤害,激怒;go one better: 胜过某人,比某人略胜一筹。

9. lumber: 木材。

10. fence: 栅栏,篱笆。

11. nail: 钉子;post-hole digger: 柱穴挖掘机。

12. supply: 供给,日用物资。

13. saw: 锯;dig: 挖掘;nail: 钉钉子。

14. one’s jaw drop: 〈俚〉某人惊诧地张口结舌。

15. stretch: 展开,铺开,使延伸。

16. handrail: (楼梯等的)栏杆,扶手;outstretched: 伸开的,展开的。

17. embrace: 拥抱。

18. hoist: 举起,抬起,拉起。

(来源:英语学习杂志 编辑:丹妮)

上一篇 : 种苹果
下一篇 : 《大鱼奇缘》(节选)

 

分享到

中国日报网英语点津版权说明:凡注明来源为“中国日报网英语点津:XXX(署名)”的原创作品,除与中国日报网签署英语点津内容授权协议的网站外,其他任何网站或单位未经允许不得非法盗链、转载和使用,违者必究。如需使用,请与010-84883561联系;凡本网注明“来源:XXX(非英语点津)”的作品,均转载自其它媒体,目的在于传播更多信息,其他媒体如需转载,请与稿件来源方联系,如产生任何问题与本网无关;本网所发布的歌曲、电影片段,版权归原作者所有,仅供学习与研究,如果侵权,请提供版权证明,以便尽快删除。

中国日报网双语新闻

扫描左侧二维码

添加Chinadaily_Mobile
你想看的我们这儿都有!

中国日报双语手机报

点击左侧图标查看订阅方式

中国首份双语手机报
学英语看资讯一个都不能少!

关注和订阅

本文相关阅读
人气排行
热搜词
 
精华栏目
 

阅读

词汇

视听

翻译

口语

合作

 

关于我们 | 联系方式 | 招聘信息

Copyright by chinadaily.com.cn. All rights reserved. None of this material may be used for any commercial or public use. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. 版权声明:本网站所刊登的中国日报网英语点津内容,版权属中国日报网所有,未经协议授权,禁止下载使用。 欢迎愿意与本网站合作的单位或个人与我们联系。

电话:8610-84883645

传真:8610-84883500

Email: languagetips@chinadaily.com.cn