英語美文欣賞

英語美文欣賞1

3．Who First Made Ice Cream

Most Americans think that ice cream is as American as baseball and apple pie．But ice cream was known long before America was discovered．

The Roman emperor Nero may have made a kind of ice cream．He hired hundreds of men to bring snow and ice from the mountains．He used it to make cold drinks．Traveler Marco Polobrought back recipes for chilled and frozen milk from China．

Hundreds of years later，ice cream reached England．It is said that King Charles Ienjoyed that treatvery much．There is a story that he bribed his cook to keep the recipe for ice cream a royal secret．

Today ice cream is known throughout the world．Americans alone eat more than two billion quartsa year．

3．誰是冰淇淋的首創者

大多數美國人認為，冰淇淋像棒球和蘋果餅一樣，是屬于美國的.。但是，早在人們發現美洲大陸之前，冰淇淋就已經問世了。

古羅馬國王尼祿可能配制過一種冰淇淋。他曾雇用幾百人從山上搬來雪和冰，用以制作冷飲料。旅行家馬可波羅也曾從中國帶回了冷凍奶和冰奶的配方。

幾百年后，冰淇淋傳到了英國。據說國王查理一世十分欣賞這種食品，他曾賄賂御廚，要他把制作冰淇淋的配方作為皇家秘密，守口如瓶。

今天全世界都知道冰淇淋了，僅美國人一年的消耗量就超過20億夸脫。

英語美文欣賞2

When love beckons to you, follow him, though his ways are hard and steep. And when his wings enfold you, yield to him, though the sword hidden among his pinions may wound you. And when he speaks to you, believe in him, though his voice may shatter your dreams as the north wind lays waste the garden.

For even as love crowns you so shall he crucify you. Even as he is for your growth so is he for your pruning. Even as he ascends to your height and caresses your tenderest branches that quiver in the sun, so shall he descend to our roots and shake them in their clinging to the earth.

But if, in your fear, you would seek only love’s peace and love’s pleasure, then it is better for you that you cover your nakedness and pass out of love’s threshing-floor, into the seasonless world where you shall laugh, but not all of your laughter, and weep, but not all of your tears. Love gives naught but it self and takes naught but from itself. Love possesses not, nor would it be possessed, for love is sufficient unto love.

Love has no other desire but to fulfill itself. But if you love and must have desires, let these be your desires:

To melt and be like a running brook that sings its melody to the night.

To know the pain of too much tenderness.

To be wounded by your own understanding of love;

And to bleed willingly and joyfully.

To wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving;

To rest at the noon hour and meditate love’s ecstasy;

To return home at eventide with gratitude;

And then to sleep with a payer for the beloved in your heart and a song of praise upon your lips.

譯文：愛的召喚

當愛召喚你時，請追隨她，盡管愛的道路艱難險峻。當愛的羽翼擁抱你時，請順從她，盡管隱藏在其羽翼之下的劍可能會傷到你。當愛向你訴說時，請相信她，盡管她的聲音可能打破你的夢想，就如同北風吹落公園里所有的花瓣。

愛會給你戴上桂冠，也會折磨你。愛會助你成長，也會給你修枝。愛會上升到枝頭，撫愛你在陽光下顫動力的嫩枝，也會下潛至根部，撼動力你緊抓泥土的根基。

但是，如果你在恐懼之中只想尋求愛的平和與快樂，那你就最好掩蓋真實的自我，避開愛的考驗，進入不分季節的世界，在那里你將歡笑，但并非開懷大笑，你將哭泣，但并非盡情地哭。愛只將自己付出，也只得到自己。愛一無所有，也不會為誰所有，因為愛本身就已自足。

愛除了實現自我別無他求。但是如果你愛而又不得不有所求，那就請期待：

將自己融化并像奔流的溪水一般向夜晚吟唱自己優美的.曲調。

明了過多的溫馨所帶來的苦痛。

被自己對愛的理解所傷害；

并情愿快樂地悲傷。

在黎明帶著輕快的心醒來并感謝又一個有家的日子；

在黃昏懷著感恩之心回家；

然后為內心所愛之人祈禱，吟唱贊美之歌，并帶著禱告和歌聲入眠。

英語美文欣賞3

There is one word that is on the lips of Americans, day and night: “Sorry.”

One time as I was walking on the street, a young man ran by hurriedly, brushing against my handbag. Even as he continued on his way, he turned back and said “sorry” to me. Even in a rush, he didn’t forget to apologize. One day, after I bought a mango, the salesman was giving me the change, but I wasn’t ready for it and a coin dropped to the ground. “I’m sorry,” he said while bending down to pick it up. I was puzzled—why would he apologize when it is my fault?

Another time, I stepped on a man’s foot in an escalator, at the same time, we both said “sorry”. I thought it interesting, was it really necessary for him to apologize? Later on, an American friend explained to me that according to the American mentality, the escalators a public place, and everyone should be able to stand in it. After someone occupies a position in the elevator, making it difficult for someone else to find a place to stand, isn’t it necessary to express an apology?

If you go to the movies and the tickets happen to be sold out, the ticket seller will say: “Sorry, the tickets are sold out.” Whenever one of your hopes goes unfulfilled, an American will say “sorry” as a sign of sympathy.

During my stay in America, I often came across situations in which I was supposed to say “sorry”. Gradually, I realized that when friction occurs in daily life, Americans don’t care much about who is responsible; If someone is troubled, a “sorry” is always necessary. When this happens, even if the other person is hurt, the “sorry” cools tempers and human generosity is displayed. Perhaps this is why I never saw anyone quarreling on the buses, subways or streets of America.

英語美文欣賞4

One of my fondest memories as a child is going by the river and sitting idly on the bank.

孩提時最美好的回憶就是河邊的堤岸上閑坐。

There I would enjoy the peace and quiet,在那里我可以享受閑適和寧靜，watch the water rush downstream,看河水奔流而下，and listen to the chirps of birds，聽鳥兒啁啾，and the rustling of leaves in the trees.

而鳴樹葉沙沙作響。

I would also watch the bamboo trees bend under pressure from the wind and watch them return gracefully to their upright or original position after the wind had died down.

我看到竹子在風的壓力下彎曲風過后再優雅地或復原或筆挺。

When I think about the bamboo tree 8217;s ability to bounce back or return to its original position,每當我想到竹子這種彈回去或者說恢復原狀的本領時，the word resilience comes to mind.

韌性一詞便會在腦海中浮現。

When used in reference to a person this word means the ability to readily recover from shock, depression or any other situation that stretches the limits of a person 8217;s emotions.

當這個詞用于描述人時，指的`是從驚嚇，沮喪及其他任何觸及某人情感極限的狀態下從容的恢復過來的能力。

Have you ever felt like you are about to snap?

你是否曾覺得自己快要垮掉?

Have you ever felt like you are at your breaking point?

你是否曾感覺自己即將崩潰?

Thankfully, you have survived the experience to live to talk about it.

令人欣慰的是你已經挺過來了。是生活得以繼續讓你能夠在此談論過往的經歷。

During the experience you probably felt a mix of emotions that threatened your health.

在那樣的經歷中你或許體會到了某些威脅健康的復雜情緒。

You felt emotionally drained, mentally exhausted and you most likely endured unpleasant physical symptoms.

你會感到情緒上萎靡不振，心力交瘁并且很可能還要受到各種討厭的身體癥狀的折磨。

Life is a mixture of good times and bad times,人生是一個五味瓶，happy moments and unhappy moments.

既有順境也有逆境既有快樂也有悲傷。

The next time you are experiencing one of those bad times or unhappy moments that take you close to your breaking point,下一次當你遭遇逆境感受悲傷幾乎要被它們推到崩潰的邊緣時，bend but don 8217;t break.

你應曲而不折。

Try your best not to let the situation get the best of you.

盡你所能不被現狀擊敗。

A measure of hope will take you through the unpleasant ordeal.

心懷希望將會幫你渡過難關。

With hope for a better tomorrow or a better situation,心懷希望迎接一個更美好的明天或者更好的狀況時，things may not be as bad as they seem to be.

事情或許就沒有看上去的那么糟糕。

The unpleasant ordeal may be easier to deal with if the end result is worth having.

如果結局值得擁有你將會更容易戰勝那些不愉快的考驗。

If the going gets tough and you are at your breaking point,假如你正面對困難處在崩潰的邊緣，show resilience.

請表現出你的韌性來

Like the bamboo tree, bend, but don 8217;t break.

就像竹子一樣，彎曲但不折斷。

英語美文欣賞5

Age has reached the end of the beginning of a word. May be guilty in his seems to passing a lot of different life became the appearance of the same day; May be back in the past, to oneself the paranoid weird belief disillusionment, these days, my mind has been very messy, in my mind constantly. Always feel oneself should go to do something, or write something. Twenty years of life trajectory deeply shallow, suddenly feel something, do it.

一字開頭的年齡已經到了尾聲。或許是愧疚于自己似乎把轉瞬即逝的很多個不同的日子過成了同一天的樣子；或許是追溯過去，對自己那些近乎偏執的怪異信念的醒悟，這些天以來，思緒一直很凌亂，在腦海中不斷糾纏。總覺得自己自己似乎應該去做點什么，或者寫點什么。二十年的人生軌跡深深淺淺，突然就感覺到有些事情，非做不可了。

The end of our life, and can meet many things really do?

而窮盡我們的一生，又能遇到多少事情是真正地非做不可？

During my childhood, think lucky money and new clothes are necessary for New Year, but as the advance of the age, will be more and more found that those things are optional; Junior high school, thought to have a crush on just means that the real growth, but over the past three years later, his writing of alumni in peace, suddenly found that isn't really grow up, it seems is not so important; Then in high school, think don't want to give vent to out your inner voice can be in the high school children of the feelings in a period, but was eventually infarction when graduation party in the throat, later again stood on the pitch he has sweat profusely, looked at his thrown a basketball hoops, suddenly found himself has already can't remember his appearance.

童年時，覺得壓歲錢和新衣服是過年必備，但是隨著年齡的推進，會越來越發現，那些東西根本就可有可無；初中時，以為要有一場暗戀才意味著真正的成長，但三年過去后，自己心平氣和的寫同學錄的.時候，突然就發現是不是真正的成長了，好像并沒有那么重要了；然后到了高中，覺得非要吐露出自己的心聲才能為高中生涯里的懵懂情愫劃上一個句點，但畢業晚會的時候最終還是被梗塞在了咽喉，后來再次站在他曾經揮汗如雨的球場，看著他投過籃球的球框時，突然間發現自己已經想不起他的容顏。

Originally, this world, can produce a chemical reaction to an event, in addition to resolutely, have to do, and time.

原來，這個世界上，對某個事件能產生化學反應的，除了非做不可的堅決，還有，時間。

A person's time, your ideas are always special to clear. Want, want, line is clear, as if nothing could shake his. Also once seemed to be determined to do something, but more often is he backed out at last. Dislike his cowardice, finally found that there are a lot of love, there are a lot of miss, like shadow really have been doomed. Those who do, just green years oneself give oneself an arm injection, or is a self-righteous spiritual.

一個人的時候，自己的想法總是特別地清晰。想要的，不想要的，界限明確，好像沒有什么可以撼動自己。也曾經好像已經下定了決心去做某件事，但更多的時候是最后又打起了退堂鼓。嫌惡過自己的怯懦，最終卻發現有很多緣分，有很多錯過，好像冥冥之中真的已經注定。那些曾經所謂的非做不可，只是青蔥年華里自己給自己注射的一支強心劑，或者說，是自以為是的精神寄托罷了。

At the moment, the sky is dark, the air is fresh factor after just rained. Suddenly thought of blue plaid shirt; Those were broken into various shapes of stationery; From the corner at the beginning of deep friendship; Have declared the end of the encounter that haven't start planning... Those years, those days of do, finally, like youth, will end in our life.

此刻，天空是陰暗的，空氣里有著剛下過雨之后的清新因子。突然想到那件藍格子襯衫；那些被折成各種各樣形狀的信紙；那段從街角深巷伊始的友誼；還有那場還沒有開始就宣告了終結的邂逅計劃……那些年那些天的非做不可，終于和青春一樣，都將在我們的人生中謝幕。

英語美文欣賞6

一封給我兒子的信

Dear Seth,

親愛的塞斯，

You're only three years old, and at this point in your life you can't read, much less understand what I'm going to try to tell you in this letter.

你現在僅僅3歲，此刻你還不識字，更不用說讓你去理解我接下來想在這封信里對你所說的話了。

But I've been thinking a lot about the life that you have ahead of you, about my life so far as I reflect on what I've learned, and about my role as a dad in trying to prepare you for the trials that you will face in the coming years。

但是我已經苦思冥想了好久，關于你即將面臨的人生以及我的生活，我反思我所學會的;思考一個父親的職責，力圖讓你為未來歲月中即將面臨的困難做好充分準備。

You won't be able to understand this letter today, but someday, when you're ready, I hope you will find some wisdom and value in what I share with you。

你今天并不能理解這封信的含義，但是某一天，當時機成熟，我希望你能在我與你分享的內容當中找尋到些許的智慧和價值。

You are young, and life has yet to take its toll on you, to throw disappointments and heartaches and loneliness and struggles and pain into your path. You have not been worn down yet by long hours of thankless work, by the slings and arrows of everyday life。

你還很年輕，生命還尚未開始摧殘你，沒有在你的人生道路上布置失望，傷心，孤獨，掙扎和苦痛。你還沒有被漫長的乏味工作，被日常生活的打擊搞得筋疲力盡。

For this, be thankful. You are at a wonderful stage of life. You have many wonderful stages of life still to come, but they are not without their costs and perils。

因此，謝天謝地吧。你正處在人生一個美妙的階段。還有很多美妙的階段會來到你面前，但是都不是唾手可得的，你都得付出代價，經歷風險。

I hope to help you along your path by sharing some of the best of what I've learned. As with any advice, take it with a grain of salt. What works for me might not work for you。

我希望通過分享一些我所學到的最好的道理能幫助你走好人生路。至于任何建議，且把它當作佐料，因為適合我的并不一定適用于你。

Life Can Be Cruel

生活會很殘酷

There will be people in your life who won't be very nice. They'll tease you because you're different, or for no good reason. They might try to bully you or hurt you。

你的生活中一定會有并不友好的人。他們恥笑你因為你不同，而在沒有更好的理由。他們可能會欺負你或者傷害你。

There's not much you can do about these people except to learn to deal with them, and learn to choose friends who are kind to you, who actually care about you, who make you feel good about yourself.

對這種人你除了學會和其接觸無計可施，同時你也要學會擇友，選擇那些對你友善的，那些真正關心你的，那些令你對自己感到很好的人做朋友。

When you find friends like this, hold on to them, treasure them, spend time with them, be kind to them, love them。

當你尋找到像這樣的朋友，就一定要堅守這份友誼，珍惜他們，花些時間和他們在一起，友善的對待他們并愛他們。

There will be times when you are met with disappointment instead of success. Life won't always turn out the way you want. This is just another thing you'll have to learn to deal with. But instead of letting these things get you down, push on. Accept disappointment and learn to persevere, to pursue your dreams despite pitfalls. Learn to turn negatives into positives, and you'll do much better in life。

有時你會遭遇挫折而非成功。生活并不總會如你所愿。這是另一件你需要學會處理的事情。但你要挺住向前，而不是讓這些事讓你陷入低谷。接受挫敗并學會堅持，不畏風險地追求你的夢想。學會把消極轉化為積極，之后你就能做的好得多。

You will also face heartbreak and abandonment by those you love. I hope you don't have to face this too much, but it happens.

你同樣會面臨心碎時刻以及你深愛的'人的拋棄。我希望你無須經歷太多此類事件，但如果不幸發生了

Again, not much you can do but to heal, and to move on with your life. Let these pains become stepping stones to better things in life, and learn to use them to make you stronger。

再一次，除了慢慢愈合心中的創傷并繼續下去你的生活，你別無選擇。讓這些痛苦成為你通向更美好生活的墊腳石，并學會利用它們讓自己更堅強。

But Be Open to life Anyway

但無論如何，都要張開雙臂擁抱生活

Yes, you'll find cruelty and suffering in your journey through life … but don't let that close you to new things. Don't retreat from life, don't hide or wall yourself off. Be open to new things, new experiences, new people。

是的，在你的生命歷程中你會遇到殘酷，煎熬……但不要讓這些讓你拒絕接受新鮮事物。不要逃避生活，不要躲藏，抑或封閉自己。擁抱新鮮事物，經歷全新體驗，接觸新的人。

You might get your heart broken 10 times, but find the most wonderful woman the 11th time. If you shut yourself off from love, you'll miss out on that woman, and the happiest times of your life。

你或許心碎了10次，但是在第十一次找到至愛。如果你把自己關在愛的門外，你就會錯過這個女子，和你生命中最快樂的時光。

You might get teased and bullied and hurt by people you meet … and then after meeting dozens of jerks, find a true friend. If you close yourself off to new people, and don't open your heart to them, you'll avoid pain … but also lose out on meeting some incredible people, who will be there during the toughest times of your life and create some of the best times of your life。

你可能會被你遇到的人恥笑欺負傷害…而在見了一打這種稀奇古怪的人后，你會找到一個真正的朋友。如果你拒絕接觸新人群，并不向他們敞開心扉，你會避免受傷……但是同時也失去了認識這些不可思議的人的機會，他們會在你生命最困難的時刻陪伴著你，并帶給你人生當中最美好的時光。

You will fail many times but if you allow that to stop you from trying, you will miss out on the amazing feeling of success once you reach new heights with your accomplishments. Failure is a stepping stone to success。

你會失敗多次但是如果你讓失敗打到了你，不再努力，你就會錯過那種當你達到成就新高度的難以言喻的成就感。失敗是成功之母。

Love Should Be Your Rule

愛應該成為你的生活準則

If there's a single word you should live your life by, it should be this: Love. It might sound corny, I know … but trust me, there's no better rule in life。

如果讓一個詞成為你的生活支撐的話，那它應該是愛。也許這聽來已是老生常談，我也清楚… 但是請信任我，再沒有更好的生活準則了。

Some would live by the rule of success. Their lives will be stressful, unhappy and shallow。

一些人以成功作為生活準則。他們的生活會很緊張，不開心并且很淺薄。

Others would live by the rule of selfishness — putting their needs above those of others. They will live lonely lives, and will also be unhappy。

另一些人的生活準則是個人利益---他們將個人需要置于他人需要之上。他們孤獨一生，終究也不會快樂。

Still others will live by the rule of righteousness — trying to show the right path, and admonishing anyone who doesn't live by that path. They are concerned with others, but in a negative way, and in the end will only have their own righteousness to live with, and that's a horrible companion。

還有一些人他們為正義而生---努力展示其道路的正確性，并試圖勸服任何一個不以正義為生活準則的人。他們關心他人，卻以一種消極的方式，最終懷抱追尋一生的正義而終，而正卻是一個糟糕的伴侶。

Live your life by the rule of love. Love your spouse, your children, your parents, your friends, with all of your heart. Give to them what they need, and show them not cruelty nor disapproval nor coldness nor disappointment, but only love. Open your soul to them。

用愛支撐你的生命。愛你的妻子，你的孩子，你的父母親，你的朋友，全心全意地去愛。給與他們你所需要的，不要流露出任何殘忍，不贊同，冷漠或者失望，只有愛。向他們敞開靈魂。

Love not only your loved ones, but your neighbors … your coworkers … strangers … your brothers and sisters in humanity. Offer anyone you meet a smile, a kind word, a kind gesture, a helping hand。

不僅僅愛你深愛的人，也要愛你的鄰居.。。你的同事…甚至陌生人…他們是你廣義上的兄弟姐妹。給你遇到的任何一個人一個微笑，一句善語。一個友好的姿勢，一只援助之手。

Love not only neighbors and strangers … but your enemy. The person who is cruelest to you, who has been unkind to you … love him. He is a tortured soul, and most in need of your love。

不僅僅愛鄰居和陌生人…也要愛你的敵人。對你最殘酷的人，對曾經對你不善的人…愛他。他是一個備受折磨的靈魂，最需要你的愛。

And most of all, love yourself. While others may criticize you, learn not to be so hard on yourself, to think that you’re ugly or dumb or unworthy of love … but to think instead that you are a wonderful human being, worthy of Happiness and love … and learn to love yourself for who you are。

最重要的是愛你自己。當別人批評你時，學著不要強加自己，去認為自己丑，笨或者不值得去愛…而要想著自己是一個很完美的人，值得擁有幸福和真愛…并學會愛現在的自己。

Finally, know that I love you and always will. You are starting out on a weird, scary, daunting, but ultimately incredibly wonderful journey, and I will be there for you when I can. Godspeed.

最后，要知道我愛你并且永遠都會，你即將開啟一段有點奇怪，令人害怕，令人心悸但最終很不可思議的巧妙旅程，我永遠會支持你。祝萬事如意。

英語美文欣賞7

If I were a boy again, I would cultivate courage. “Nothing is so mild and gentle as courage, nothing so cruel and pitiless as cowardice,” syas a wise author. We too often borrow trouble, and anticipate that may never appear.” The fear of ill exceeds the ill we fear.” Dangers will arise in any career, but presence of mind will often conquer the worst of them. Be prepared for any fate, and there is no harm to be freared. If I were a boy again, I would look on the cheerful side. Life is very much like a mirror: if you smile upon it, I smiles back upon you; but if you frown and look doubtful on it, you will get a similar look in return. Inner sunshine warms not only the heart of the owner, but of all that come in contact with it. “ who shuts love out ,in turn shall be shut out from love.” If I were a boy again, I would school myself to say no more often. I might write pages on the importance of learning very early in life to gain that point where a young boy can stand erect, and decline doing an unworthy act because it is unworthy. If I were a boy again, I would demand of myself more courtesy towards my companions and friends, and indeed towards strangers as well. The smallest courtesies along the rough roads of life are like the little birds that sing to us all winter long, and make that season of ice and snow more endurable. Finally, instead of trying hard to be happy, as if that were the sole purpose of life, I would , if I were a boy again, I would still try harder to make others happy.

假如我又回到了童年，我就要培養勇氣。一位明智的作家曾說過：“世上沒有東西比勇氣更溫文爾雅，也沒有東西比懦怯更殘酷無情。”我們常常過多地自尋煩惱，杞人憂天。“怕禍害比禍害本身更可怕。”凡事都有危險，但鎮定沉著往往能克服最嚴重的危險。對一切禍福做好準備，那么就沒有什么災難可以害怕的了。假如我又回到了童年，我就要事事樂觀。生活猶如一面鏡子：你朝它笑，它也朝你笑；如果你雙眉緊鎖，向它投以懷疑的目光，它也將還以你同樣的.目光。內心的歡樂不僅溫暖了歡樂者自己的心，也溫暖了所有與之接觸者的心。“誰拒愛于門外，也必將被愛拒諸門外。”假如我又回到了童年，我就要養成經常說“不”字的習慣。一個少年要能挺得起腰，拒絕做不應該做的事，就因為這事不值得做。我可以寫上好幾頁談談早年培養這一點的重要性。假如我又回到了童年，我就要要求自己對伙伴和朋友更加禮貌，而且對陌生人也應如此。在坎坷的生活道路上，最細小的禮貌猶如在漫長的冬天為我們歌唱的小鳥，那歌聲使冰天雪地的寒冬變得較易忍受。最后，假如我又回到了童年，我不會力圖為自己謀幸福，好像這就是人生唯一的目的；與之相反，我要更努力為他人謀幸福。

英語美文欣賞8

Sweet, wild berries plucked from roadside patches are a delightful side benefit of camping. Each summer, my husband Bob and I would send the kids off with their little metal buckets and the next day we would all enjoy the fruits of their labor: raspberry pancakes turned on the grill or firm blackberries to dot a hot cooked-on-the-campfire peanut butter sandwich.

The children looked forward to picking. We could usually find just about anything, from blueberries in early summer to raspberries and blackberries in August. Every year - except one.

“There's nothing around here to pick!” five-year-old Julie complained, poking a stick into the dying fire one late summer evening.

The season had been too dry; what few blackberries were left on the bushes were hard as marbles.

“Yeah. I looked all over,” added four-year-old Brian. “Wish there was something.”

That night, after the kids were zipped into their sleeping sacks and I was sure they weren't awake, I handed Bob a bag of large marshmallows and I grabbed a bag of the miniatures.

“Get the lantern and follow me,” I said. “We're going to make a memory.”

“What?” He looked puzzled.

I told him about the kids'campfire conversation and Bob grinned, “Let's go!”

The next morning over pancakes, I said, “Kids, I think you're going to have something to pick today.”

“Really!” Julie's eyes shone. “What?”

“What?” echoed Brian.

“Marshmallows,” I said, as though I'd said it every summer. “Last night Daddy and I walked down toward the lake and it looks as though they're just about ready to pick. It's a good thing we're here now. They only come out one day a year.”

Julie looked skeptical, and Brian giggled. “You're silly, Mom! Marshmallows come in bags from the store.”

I shrugged. “So do blackberries, but you've picked those, haven't you? Somebody just puts them in bags.”

“Daddy, is that true?” He demanded.

Bob was very busy turning pancakes. “Guess you'll just have to go find out for yourself,” he answered. “Okay!”

They were off in a flurry, little metal buckets reflecting the morning sun.

“You nut,” Bob said to me, laughing. “It won't work.”

“Be a believer,” I answered.

Minutes later our two excited children rushed into the clearing.

“Look! I got some that were just babies!” Julie held up a miniature.

“I picked the big ones!” said Brian. “Boy, I want to cook one! Light the fire, Daddy, quick!”

“All right, all right, settle down.” Bob winked at me. “They won't spoil.” He lit some small sticks while the kids ran for their hot dog forks.

“Mine will be better because they're so little,” predicted Julie. Brian shrugged, mashing two large ones on his fork.

We waited for the culinary verdict.

“Wow! Brian's eyes rounded with surprise. ”These are sure better than those old ones in the bags!“ He reached for another. ”These are so good!“

”Of course,“ I said. ”These are really fresh!“

Julie looked puzzled. ”How come all those marshmallow bushes don't have the same kinds of leaves?“

”Just different kinds, that's all,“ I replied quickly. ”Like flowers.“

”Oh.“ She licked her fingers, seemingly satisfied with my answer. Then, studying the next marshmallow before she popped it into her mouth, she looked up with the sweetest smile and said softly, ”We're so lucky that they bloomed today!“

英語美文欣賞9

Lillian was a young French Canadian girl who grew up in the farming community of River Canard, Ontario. At the age of 16, her father thought ”Lill has had enough schooling,“and she was forced to drop out of school to contribute to the family income. In 1922, with English as her second language and limited education and skills, the future didn't look bright for Lill.

Her father, Eugene Bezaire, was a stern man who rarely took no for an answer and never accepted excuses. He demanded that Lill find a job. But her limitations left her with little confidence and low self-esteem, and she didn't know what work she could do.

With small hope of gaining employment, she would still ride the bus daily into the ”big cities“of Windsor or Detroit. But she couldn't muster the courage to respond to a Help Wanted ad; she couldn't even bring herself to knock on a door. Each day she would just ride to the city, walk aimlessly about and at dusk return home. Her father would ask, ”Any luck today, Lill?“ ”No ... no luck today, Dad,“she would respond meekly.

As the days passed, Lill continued to ride and her father continued to ask about her job-hunting. The questions became more demanding, and Lill knew she would soon have to knock on a door.

On one of her trips, Lill saw a sign at the Carhartt Overall Company in downtown Detroit. ”Help Wanted,“the sign said, ”Secretarial. Apply Within.“She walked up the long flight of stairs to the Carhartt Company offices. Cautiously, Lill knocked on her very first door. She was met by the office manager, Margaret Costello. In her broken English, Lill told her she was interested in the secretarial position, falsely stating that she was 19. Margaret knew something wasn't right, but decided to give the girl a chance. She guided Lill through the old business office of the Carhartt Company. With rows and rows of people seated at rows and rows of typewriters and adding machines, Lill felt as if a hundred pairs of eyes were staring at her. With her chin on her chest and her eyes staring down, the reluctant farm girl followed Margaret to the back of the somber room.

Margaret sat her down at a typewriter and said, ”Lill, let's see how good you really are.“She directed Lill to type a single letter, and then left. Lill looked at the clock and saw that it was 11:40 a.m. Everyone would be leaving for lunch at noon. She figured that she could slip away in the crowd then. But she knew she should at least attempt the letter.

On her first try, she got through one line.It had five words, and she made four mistakes. She pulled the paper out and threw it away. The clock now read 11:45. ”At noon,“she said to herself, ”I'll move out with the crowd, and they will never see me again.“

On her second attempt, Lill got through a full paragraph, but still made many mistakes. Again she pulled out the paper, threw it out and started over. This time she completed the letter, but her work was still strewn with errors. She looked at the clock: 11:55 — five minutes to freedom.

Just then, the door at one end of the office opened and Margaret walked in. She came directly over to Lill, putting one hand on the desk and the other on the girl's shoulder. She read the letter and paused. Then she said, ”Lill, you're doing good work!“

Lill was stunned. She looked at the letter, then up at Margaret. With those simple words of encouragement, her desire to escape vanished and her confidence began to grow. She thought, ”Well, if she thinks it's good, then it must be good. I think I'll stay!“

Lill did stay at Carhartt Overall Company...for 51 years, through two world wars and a Depression, through presidents and six prime ministers — all because someone had the insight to give a shy and uncertain young girl the gift of self-esteem when she knocked on the door.

英語美文欣賞10

A Thanksgiving Day editorial(社論)in the newspaper told of a school teacher who asked her class of first graders to draw a picture of something they were thankful for. She thought of how little these children from poor neighborhoods actually had to be thankful for. But she knew that most of them would draw pictures of turkeys or tables with food. The teacher was taken aback(吃驚;驚訝)with the picture Douglas handed in… a smile childishly drawn hand.

感恩節那天，報紙刊登了一篇社論，其中講到這樣一個故事：有位小學一年級的老師叫班上的小朋友畫出他們感恩的東西。這些孩子均來自貧苦家庭，所以她料想他們多半會畫桌豐富的感恩節佳肴，外加一只香噴噴的火雞。但看到道格拉斯的作品后，她驚訝不已，上面畫了一只手!

But whose hand? The class was captivated(迷惑;困惑)by the abstract(抽象的)image. “I think it must be the hand of God that brings us food,” said one child. “A farmer,” said another, “because he grows the turkeys.” Finally when the others were at work, the teacher bent(彎腰;屈身)over Douglas’s desk and asked whose hand it was. “It’s your hand, Teacher,” he mumbled(咕噥;含糊地說).

這是誰的手?班上的.小朋友都興致勃勃地開始臆測，“這一定是賜給我們食物的上帝的手。”一個小孩說道。“是農夫，他用這手養出火雞。”另一個小孩也有意見。在一陣猜測后，小朋友們又跑回座位繼續畫畫。這時老師走到道格拉斯身旁，彎下腰問他那是誰的手。“那是您的手，老師。”他怯怯地回答。

She recalled that frequently at recess(課間休息)she had taken Douglas, a scrubby(身材矮小的)forlorn(孤獨的)child by the hand. She often did that with the children. But it meant so much to Douglas. Perhaps this was everyone’s Thanksgiving, not for the material things given to us but for the chance, in whatever small way, to give to others.

道格拉斯個頭矮小，平時落落寡歡，但老師在下課時總會過去牽牽他的手。她常這樣握孩童的手，但對道格拉斯而言，意義格外重大。也許過感恩節的真正意義并不在于收受他人給予我們的有形物質，而是借此機會回饋他人，無論是如何的微小的付出。

英語美文欣賞11

Tucked away in our subconsciousness is an idyllic vision. We see ourselves on a long trip that spans the continent. We are travelling by train. Out the windows, we drink in the passing scene of cars on nearby highways, of children waving on a crossing, of cattle grazing on a distant hillside, of smoke pouring from a power plant, of row upon row of corn and wheat, of flatlands and valleys, of mountains and rolling hillsides, of city skylines and village halls.

But the uppermost in our minds is the final destination. On a certain day at a certain hour, we will pull into the station. Bands will be playing and flags waving. Once we reach there, so many wonderful dreams will come true and the pieces of our lives will be fit together like a completed jigsaw puzzle. How restlessly we pace the aisles, damning the minutes loitering, waiting, waiting, waiting for the station.

”When we reach the station, that will be it“, we cry. ”When I'm 18“, ”When I buy a new 450SL Mercedes Benz“, ”When I put my last kid through collage“, ”When I have paid off the mortgage“, ”When I get a promotion“, ”When I reach the age of the retirement, I shall live happily ever after.“

Sooner or later, we must realize that there is no station, no one place to arrive at once and for all. The true joy of life is the trip. The station is only a dream. It constantly outdistances us.

”Relish the moment“ is a good motto, especially when coupled withe the Psalm 118:24:”This is the day which the Lord hath made, we will rejoice and be glad in it.“ It isn't the burdens of today that drive men mad. It is the regrets over yesterday and the fear of tommorrow. Reget and fear are twin thieves who rob us of today.

So stop pacing the aisles and counting the miles. Instead, climb more mountains, eat more icecreams, go barefoot more often, swim more rivers, watch more sunsets, laugh more and cry less. Life must be lived as we go along. Then the station will come soon enough.

我們的潛意識里藏著一派田園詩般的風光!我們仿佛身處一次橫貫大陸的漫漫旅程之中!乘著火車,我們領略著窗外流動的景色：附近高速公路上奔馳的汽車、十字路口處招手的孩童、遠山上吃草的牛群、源源不斷地從電廠排放出的煙塵、一片片的玉米和小麥、平原與山谷、群山與綿延的丘陵、天空映襯下城市的輪廓,以及鄉間的莊園宅第!

然而我們心里想得最多的卻是最終的目的'地!在某一天的某一時刻,我們將會抵達進站!迎接我們的將是樂隊和飄舞的彩旗!一旦到了那兒,多少美夢將成為現實,我們的生活也將變得完整,如同一塊理好了的拼圖!可是我們現在在過道里不耐煩地踱來踱去,咒罵火車的拖拖拉拉!我們期待著,期待著,期待著火車進站的那一刻!

”當我們到站的時候,一切就都好了!“我們呼喊著!”當我18歲的時候!“”當我有了一輛新450SL奔馳的時候!“”當我供最小的孩子念完大學的時候!“”當我償清貸款的時候!“”當我官升高任的時候!“”當我到了退休的時候,就可以從此過上幸福的生活啦!“

可是我們終究會認識到人生的旅途中并沒有車站,也沒有能夠”一到永逸“的地方!生活的真正樂趣在于旅行的過程,而車站不過是個夢,它始終遙遙領先于我們!

真正令人發瘋的不是今日的負擔,而是對昨日的悔恨及對明日的恐懼!悔恨與恐懼是一對孿生竊賊,將今天從你我身邊偷走!

那么就不要在過道里徘徊吧,別老惦記著你離車站還有多遠!何不換一種活法,將更多的高山攀爬,多吃點兒冰淇淋甜甜嘴巴,經常光著腳板兒溜達,在更多的河流里暢游,多看看夕陽西下,多點歡笑哈哈,少讓淚水滴答!生活得一邊過一邊瞧!車站就會很快到達!

英語美文欣賞12

Dear Anyone Having a Bad Week,

親愛的度過糟糕一周的你：

I'm sorry. I have no idea why your week is bad, or how bad it actually is. I don't know if you've told anyone, if there's anything that could fix it or if it's made you rather unpleasant to be around. But I do know that I'm sorry that you're hurting, or stressed, or exhausted, or grieving, or frustrated, or depressed, or lonely, or scared or lost.

我很抱歉，我無從知曉你的這一周為何很糟糕，也不知道實際情況到底有多糟。不知道你是否有找人傾訴，是否有什么方式可以讓你好受一些或者說現實是否讓你更加難過。但是我清楚地知道我為你一切不好的情緒感到深深的同情，無論是你受到傷害或者感到壓力，亦或是感到疲憊、悲傷、筋疲力盡、沮喪、孤獨、害怕還是迷失。

I thought about writing this letter in a couple of different ways. I thought about writing it about the things you could do to feel better: show yourself compassion, go outside and look at the trees, look at a baby photo of yourself. Or I thought about focusing the letter on how the ”bad weeks“ can actually be pretty beautiful, if you look at them the right way. I almost wrote those letters, and maybe at some point I will, but I think I ended up deciding that I wasn't writing to make anyone feel better -- I just want you to feel heard.

我想象過用各種不同的方式來寫這封信。我想象寫一些可以讓你感到好些的事情：比如對自己表示同情、出去看看樹木或者看看自己兒時的照片;或者我也想象過將信的著重點放在，如果你用正確的方式來看待“糟糕的'一周”，你或許會發現這一周實際很美好。我差一點就那樣寫了，也許將來會這樣寫。但是現在我最終決定不寫這些。——我只是想讓你們感到，有人聽到了你們的心聲。

There's something about humans that makes us crave for our pain to be recognized. There is something inherently good and comforting in having someone say, ”Yeah, that sounds really hard,“ or, ”It really sucks that you have to deal with all that.“

作為人類本身，我們都渴望自己的悲傷被了解。如果有人能在這個時候對你說“是的，那聽起來的確很糟”或者“你需要面對這些真的是太不幸了”，我們的內心都會感到些許好轉或安慰。

But unfortunately, that's not always the direction that society pushes us in. We have been taught that bad days are to be silently borne beneath a bright smile; that expressions of pain are uncomfortable.

但不幸的是，現實并不總能按照我們期望的方向發展。我們總是被告知需要隱藏自己的悲傷，展露自己的微笑。而這種表達方式讓人并不舒服。

I want you to know you can feel free to spill your bad day all over the place and wear it on the front of your shirt.

我想要讓你知道，你可以在任何地方自由表露你的壞情緒，你甚至可以將它畫在T恤上穿在你的身上。

I want you to know that the expressions of your pain are beautiful and that I will try my very hardest to feel the hurt with you. I want you to know that your grumpy, stressed out, short-tempered self is just as awesome as your cheerful self. Please do not shun your suffering.

我想要讓你知道你表現出來的悲傷也很美麗，我會盡我最大的努力來盡量感受你的不幸。我想要讓你知道，有壞情緒、壓力感和小脾氣的你與快樂時的你一樣可愛。請不要再壓抑自己的情感。

In writing this, know that I hear you, and let yourself be healed. I hope your day turns around, and that even if it doesn't, you can still find a few moments of beauty and/or happiness amidst the crappiness. For all of you not having bad days -- carry on, and enjoy.

在寫這篇文章時，我聽到了你們的心聲，請讓自己盡快好起來。我希望你們日子恢復正常，即使不能，你仍然可以發現一些美好的瞬間或者苦中作樂一下。為了不讓你們自己持續這種糟糕的日子，向前看，去享受生活吧!

Sincerely,

此致

克拉拉·瓦格納

英語美文欣賞13

人生總歸是要經歷經歷失戀的，因為失戀是為了讓你找到更好的。

The whole life is to experience the experience of lovelorn, because the love of love is to make you find better.

本以為校服到婚紗是時間和信任問題，可是時間久了，漸漸地我們沒有任何的親情作保障，彼此的距離就這樣一天天打敗給了現實，身邊的每個人的經歷其實都是一個很好的例子，兜兜轉轉，重復著歷史。

This is the time to dress uniforms thought and trust, but a long time, gradually we don't have any affection for security, the distance of each other on such a day defeat to reality, everyone's experience is a good example of twists and turns, repeat the history.

母親是個很乖巧的女兒，至少外婆說什么就是什么，自己也是很努力，小時候的母親上學成績是優秀的，但是出于家里有個外婆從她哥哥家抱過來的哥哥要上學，母親15歲就輟學，到織布廠里面上班維持舅舅的上學，年紀輕輕的母親，在那個懵懂的年代，因為外婆在旁邊想讓母親和舅舅湊一對，什么都不懂得母親就這樣為舅舅付出了五年的青春，等舅舅上學出來之后，舅舅說出心中所想，用近親不能在一起的理由，委婉的拒絕了養了他二十幾年的母親的念想，可是在上學需要母親幫助的時候，卻自私的接受了我母親對他的付出。還好，母親還是等到了，等到了更好的父親，父親是個老實人，因為個子不高，家里很窮，年長母親五歲，父親母親都是務實的人，為了讓子女有更好的生活，含辛茹苦的將我們姐妹養大，父親常年漂泊在異國，只為了賺更多的錢，讓我們的家變得更好。

My mother is a very clever girl, what is what my grandmother said at least, he is very hard, when the mother school grades are excellent, but for a grandma came from her brother's brother to go home, the mother left school at 15, to maintain the uncle weaving factory inside the work school. The young mother, at that time ignorant, because the grandmother beside mother and uncle want to get together, what all don't understand the mother so uncle gave five years of youth, after school uncle, uncle to say what you think, with close relatives can not reason together, refused he raised more than 20 years of mother's thought, but in need of help the mother to go to school, but the selfish accepted me to pay for his mother. Okay, wait until the mother was, the better father, father is an honest man, because not tall, the family was poor, the old five year old mother, father and mother are pragmatic, in order to let the children have a better life, we will raise the bear bitter hardships sisters, father perennial wandering in a foreign country. In order to make more money, let the home become better.

話說回來，我的那個舅舅，先是為了城鎮戶口，與一位長相一般的女生定親之后，遇到了一位貌美如花且城鎮戶口的舅媽，毅然決然拋棄未婚妻，娶了舅媽，本以為可以帶著年邁的奶奶過上了幸福的生活，卻因為一身疾病，上帝剝奪了年輕的生命，那位貌美的舅媽帶了我那小哥哥改嫁了，之后又離婚了，亦是凄涼的一生。

Anyway, that my uncle, the first is to urban hukou, and a general appearance of the girls engaged, met a beautiful and Hukou aunt, resolutely abandoned his fiancee, married aunt thought with old grandmother lived a happy life, but because of a body disease, God deprived young life, the beautiful aunt took my little brother remarried, after a divorce, is also a desolate life.

在這段脆弱的愛情史里面，母親算是幸福的，至少不管生活遇到什么，父親是他的支柱。還有倆個寶貝女人做她的貼心棉襖。還記得高一那會兒，語文老師說，父母輩是最辛苦的，上面有老的下面有小的，回去后躺在母親懷里，就問母親，母親臉上漾著笑花，幸福地說道：“我很幸福的，有愛我的老公和倆寶貝女兒，爸媽身體也很好哇。”母親這輩子是辛苦的，亦是幸福的。

In this fragile history of love, mother is happy, at least no matter what life meets, father is his pillar. There are two baby woman her intimate jacket. Remember that a high moment, Chinese teacher said, parents are the most difficult, there are old here are small, back lying in his mother's arms, the mother asked the mother, her smiling face flower, happily said: ”I am very happy, love my husband and two baby my daughter, the body is also very good.“ Mother's life is hard and happy.

其實，我是和母親很像的一個人，在我懵懂的青春里，也遇到了讓我付出整個青春的人，倆邊家長在他上本科的時候都見過面了，都是蠻喜歡的，但是就在他告知考研成功的那個早上，他的母親明確說不同意我們倆的婚事了，一下子，本來是很開心的事情，晴天霹靂，說辭是算命先生說我對他不好，在我們談了三年的時光里都沒有這個說法，但是考研之后就出來了，人都是自私，而他也搖擺不定，不知道怎么辦。

In fact, I am a person just like mother, in my ignorant youth, have let me pay the youth, when both sides parents in his undergraduate are met, are quite love, but in the morning he told his mother of success, clear that do not agree with our marriage, all of a sudden, it is fun, a bolt from the blue, rhetoric is the fortune teller said I wasn't good for him, we talked in this statement are not three years, but after the examination came out, people are selfish, but he is also wavering don't know what to do.

雖然我很理解他的搖擺不定，但是卻是不能夠原諒的，我為你付出了整個青春，本以為校服到婚紗只是時間長短問題，但是現實是你的`搖擺不定讓我對你失望至極，我想要的很簡單，至少在我需要你的時候給我一個肩膀，整個事件中，我沒有一點點的錯，卻被你母親說成這樣，你母親在哭鬧的時候，至少有你的父親在拍拍肩膀，那我呢，你在哪里？

Although I understand his wavering, but is not able to forgive, I pay the youth for you, this is just the time length to that school dress, but the reality is you swing to let me disappointed, I want very simple, at least when I need you to I am a shoulder, the entire incident, I did a little bit wrong, but your mother said that, your mother crying when, at least your father patted the shoulder, then I do, where are you?

有緣無份或許就是說的我們，在整個青春的記憶里，朋友們對我們這對寄托著對校園愛情的祝福，卻在這個畢業季，紫藤花開的時節里，說聲再見了。

Who is perhaps that we, in the memory of youth, of our friends the sustenance of campus love blessing, but in this graduation season, wisteria flowers of the season, say goodbye.

那時的我不知道怎么面對未來的生活，親愛的，你出現了，那個等了我整個青春的人，是你一直默默在我的身后，堅持著，記得你和我說過一句話，我最喜歡那首《終于等到你》，還好沒放棄我。

I do not know how to face the future life, dear, you appear, so that my entire youth, are you always silently behind me, hold on, remember you and I said a word, I love the song ”until finally you" Okay, I didn't give up.

一切的失戀是為了更好地那位出現。

All the lovelorn is for the better.

致那些和我一樣為了愛情，付出整個青春的人。

To those who are like me for love, to pay the whole youth.

英語美文欣賞14

“Sir?”

The Maestro continued to play, not looking up from the keys.

“Yes, Rollo?”

“Sir, I was wondering if you would explain this apparatus to me.”

The Maestro stopped playing, his thin body stiffly relaxed on the bench. His long supple fingers floated off the keyboard.

“Apparatus?” He turned and smiled at the robot. “Do you mean the piano, Rollo?”

“This machine that produces varying sounds. I would like some information about it, its operation and purpose. It is not included in my reference data.”

The Maestro lit a cigarette. He preferred to do it himself. One of his first orders to Rollo when the robot was delivered two days before had been to disregarded his built-in instructions on the subject.

“I’d hardly call a piano a machine, Rollo,” he smiled, “although technically you are correct. It is actually, I suppose, a machine designed to produce sounds of graduated pitch and tone, singly or in groups.”

“I assimilated that much by observation,” Rollo replied in a brassy baritone which no longer sent tiny tremors up the Maestro’s spine. “Wires of different thickness and tautness struck by felt-covered hammers activated by manually operated levers arranged in a horizontal panel.”

“A very cold-blooded description of one of man’s nobler works,” the Maestro remarked dryly. “You make Mozart and Chopin mere laboratory technicians.”

“Mozart? Chopin?” The duralloy sphere that was Rollo’s head shone stark and featureless, its immediate surface unbroken but for twin vision lenses. “The terms are not included in my memory banks.”

“No, not yours, Rollo,” the Maestro said softly. “Mozart and Chopin are not for vacuum tubes and fuses and copper wire. They are for flesh and blood and human tears.”

“I do not understand,” Rollo droned.

“Well,” the Maestro said, smoke curling lazily from his nostrils, “they are two of the humans who compose, or design successions of notes--varying sounds, that is, produced by the piano or by other instruments, machines that produce other types of sounds of fixed pitch and tone.

“Sometimes these instruments, as we call them, are played, or operated, individually: sometimes in groups--orchestras, as we refer to them--and the sounds blend together, they harmonize. That is, they have an orderly, mathematical relationship to each other which results in...”

The Maestro threw up his hands.

“I never imagined,” he chuckled, “that I would some day struggle so mightily, and so futilely, to explain music to a robot!”

“Music?”

“Yes, Rollo. The sounds produced by this machine and others of the same category are called music.”

“What is the purpose of music, sir?”

“Purpose?”

The Maestro crushed the cigarette in an ash tray. He turned to the keyboard of the concert grand and flexed his fingers briefly.

“Listen, Rollo.”

The wraithlike fingers glided and wove the opening bars of “Clair de Lune,” slender and delicate as spider silk. Rollo stood rigid, the fluorescent light over the music rack casting a bluish jeweled sheen over his towering bulk, shimmering in the amber vision lenses.

The Maestro drew his hands back from the keys and the subtle thread of melody melted reluctantly into silence.

“Claude Debussy”, the Maestro said. “One of our mechanics of an era long past. He designed that succession of tones many years ago. What do you think of it?”

Rollo did not answer at once.

“The sounds were well formed,” he replied finally. “They did not jar my auditory senses as some do.”

The Maestro laughed. “Rollo, you may not realize it, but you’re a wonderful critic.”

“This music, then,” Rollo droned. “Its purpose is to give pleasure to humans?”

“Exactly,” the Maestro said. “Sounds well formed, that do not jar the auditory senses as some do. Marvelous! It should be carved in marble over the entrance of New Carnegie Hall.”

“I do not understand. Why should my definition--?”

The Maestro waved a hand. “No matter, Rollo. No matter.”

“Sir?”

“Yes, Rollo?”

“Those sheets of paper you sometimes place before you on the piano. They are the plans of the composer indicating which sounds are to be produced by the piano and in what order?”

“Just so. We call each sound a note; combinations of notes we call chords.”

“Each dot, then, indicates a sound to be made?”

“Perfectly correct, my man of metal.”

Rollo stared straight ahead. The Maestro felt a peculiar sense of wheels turning within that impregnable sphere.

“Sir, I have scanned my memory banks and find no specific or implied instructions against it. I should like to be taught how to produce these notes on the piano. I request that you feed the correlation between those dots and the levers of the panel into my memory banks.”

The Maestro peered at him, amazed. A slow grin traveled across his face.

“Done!” he exclaimed. “It’s been many years since pupils helped gray these ancient locks, but I have the feeling that you, Rollo, will prove a most fascinating student. To instill the Muse into metal and machinery... I accept the challenge gladly!”

He rose, touched the cool latent power of Rollo’s arm.

“Sit down here, my Rolleindex Personal Robot, Model M-e. We shall start Beethoven spinning in his grave--or make musical history.”

More than an hour later the Maestro yawned and looked at his watch.

“It’s late,” he spoke into the end of the yawn. “These old eyes are not tireless like yours, my friend.” He touched Rollo’s shoulder. “You have the complete fundamentals of musical notation in your memory banks, Rollo. That’s a good night’s lesson, particularly when I recall how long it took me to acquire the same amount of information. Tomorrow we’ll attempt to put those awesome fingers of yours to work.”

He stretched. “I’m going to bed,” he said. “Will you lock up and put out the lights?”

“May I attempt to create some sounds with the keyboard tonight? I will do so very softly so as not to disturb you.”

“Tonight? Aren’t you--?” Then the Maestro smiled. “You must pardon me, Rollo. It’s still a bit difficult for me to realize that sleep has no meaning for you.”

英語美文欣賞15

if i were a boy again, i would practice perseverance more often, and never give up a thing because it was or inconvenient. if we want light, we must conquer darkness. perseverance can sometimes equal genius in its results. “there are only two creatures,” says a proverb, “who can surmount the pyramids—the eagle and the snail.”

if i were a boy again, i would school myself into a habit of attention; i would let nothing come between me and the subject in hand. i would remember that a good skater never tries to skate in two directions at once.the habit of attention becomes part of our life, if we begin early enough. i often hear grown up people say “ i could not fix my attention on the sermon or book, although i wished to do so” , and the reason is, the habit was not formed in youth.

if i were to live my life over again, i would pay more attention to the cultivation of the memory. i would strengthen that faculty by every possible means, and on every possible occasion. it takes a little hard work at first to remember things accurately; but memory soon helps itself, and gives very little trouble. it only needs early cultivation to become a power.

[美文欣賞]

“We are reading the first verse of the first chapter of a book whose pages are infinite...”

I do not know who wrote those words, but I have always liked them as a reminder that the future can be anything we want to make it.We can take the mysterious, hazy future and carve out of it anything that we can imagine, just as a sculptor carves a statue from a shapeless stone.We are all in the position of the farmer.If we plant a good seed, we reap a good harvest.If our seed is poor and full of weeds, we reap a useless crop.If we plant nothing at all, we harvest nothing at all.I want the future to be better than the past.I don’t want it contaminated by the mistakes and errors with which history is filled.We should all be concerned about the future because that is where we will spend the remainder of our lives.The past is gone and static.Nothing we can do will change it.The future is before us and dynamic.Everything we do will affect it.Each day brings with it new frontiers, in our homes and in our business, if we only recognize them.We are just at the beginning of the progress in every field of human endeavor.[參考譯文]

“我們正在讀一本書的第一章第一行，這本書的頁數是無限的??”

我不知道是誰寫的，可我很喜歡這句話，它提醒我們未來是由自己創造的。我們可以把神秘、不可知的未來塑造成我們想象中的任何模樣，猶如雕刻家將未成形的石頭刻成雕像。

我們每個人都像是農夫。灑下良種將有豐收，播下劣種或生滿野草便將毀去收成。沒有耕耘則會一無所獲。

我希望未來比過去更加美好，希望未來不會沾染歷史的錯誤與過失。我們都應舉目向前，因我們的余生要用未來書寫。

往昔已逝，靜如止水；我們無法再作改變。而前方的未來正生機勃勃；我們所做的每一件事都將會影響著它。只要我們認識到這些，無論是在家中還是在工作上，每天我們的面前都會展現出新的天地。

在人類致力開拓的每一片領域上，我們正站在進步的起跑點。

[美文欣賞]

To a large degree, the measure of our peace of mind is determined by how much we are able to live on the present moment.Irrespective of what happened yesterday or last year, and what may or may not happen tomorrow, the present moment is where you are--always!

Without question, many of us have mastered the neurotic art of spending much of our lives worrying about variety of things--all at once.We allow past problems and future concerns to dominate your present moments, so much so that we end up anxious, frustrated, depressed, and hopeless.On the flip side, we also postpone our gratification, our stated priorities, and our happiness, often convincing ourselves that “someday” will be much better than today.Unfortunately, the same mental dynamics that tell us to look toward the future will only repeat themselves so that 'someday' never actually arrives.John Lennone once said, “Life is what is happening while we are busy making other plans.” When we are busy making 'other plans', our children are busy growing up, the people we love are moving away and dying, our bodies are getting out of shape, and our dreams are slipping away.In short, we miss out on life.Many people lives as if life is a dress rehearsal for some later date.It isn't.In fact, no one has a guarantee that he or she will be here tomorrow.Now is the only time we have, and the only time that we have any control over.When our attention is in the present moment, we push fear from our minds.Fear is the concern over events that might happen in the future--we won't have enoughh money, our children will get into trouble, we will get old and die, whatever.To combat fear, the best stradegy is to learn to bring your attention back to the present.Mark Twain said,“I have been through some terrible things in life, some of which actually happened.” I don't think I can say it any better.Practice keeping your attention on the here and now.Your effort will pay great dividends.[參考譯文]

我們內心是否平和在很大程度上是由我們是否能生活在現實之中所決定的．不管昨天或去年發生了什么，不管明天可能發生或不發生什么，現實才是你時時刻刻所在之處。

毫無疑問，我們很多人掌握了一種神經兮兮的藝術，即把生活中的大部分時間花在為種種事情擔心憂慮上－－而且常常是同時憂慮許多事情．

我們聽憑過去的麻煩和未來的擔心控制我們此時此刻的生活，以至我們整日焦慮不安，委靡不振，甚至沮喪絕望．而另一方面我們又推遲我們的滿足感，推遲我們應優先考慮的事情，推遲我們的幸福感，常常說服自己“有朝一日”會比今天更好．不幸的是，如此告戒我們朝前看的大腦動力只能重復來重復去，以至“有朝一日”不會真的來臨．約翰．列儂曾經說過：“生活就是當我們忙于制定別的計劃時發生的事．”當我們忙于指定種種＂別的計劃＂時，我們的孩子在忙于長大，我們摯愛的人離去了甚至快去世了，我們的體型變樣了，而我們的夢想也在消然溜走了．一句話，我們錯過了生活。

許多人的生活好象是某個未來日子的彩排，并非如此。事實上，沒人能保證他或她肯定還活著。現在是我們所擁有的唯一時間，現在也是我們能控制的唯一的時間。當我們將注意力放在此時此刻時，我們就將恐懼置于腦后。恐懼就是我們擔憂某些事情會在未來發生－－我們不諱有足夠的錢，我們的孩子會惹上麻煩，我們會變老，會死去，諸如此類。

若要克服恐懼心理，最佳策略是學會將你的注意力拉回此時此刻。馬克．吐溫說過：“我經歷過生活中一些可怕的事情，有些的確發生過。”我想我說不出比這更具內涵的話。經常將注意力集中于此情此景，此時此刻，你的努力終會有豐厚的報償。

[美文欣賞]

Everybody has blue days.These are miserable days when you feel lousy, grumpy, lonely, and utterly exhausted.Days when you feel small and insignificant, when everything seems just out of reach.You can’t rise to the occasion.Just getting started seems impossible.On blue days you can become paranoid that everyone is out to get you.This is not always such a bad thing.You feel frustrated and anxious, which can induce a nail-biting frenzy that can escalate into a triple-chocolate-mud-cake-eating frenzy in a blink of an eye!On blue days you feel like you’re floating in an ocean of sadness.You’re about to burst into tears at any moment and you don’t even know why.Ultimately, you feel like you’re wandering through life without purpose.You’re not sure how much longer you can hang on, and you feel like shouting,“Will someone please shoot me!”It doesn’t take much to bring on a blue day.You might just wake up not feeling or looking your best,find some new wrinkles, put on a little weight, or get a huge pimple on your nose.You could forget your date’s name or have an embarrassing photograph published.You might get dumped,divorced, or fired, make a fool of yourself in public, be afflicted with a demeaning nickname,or just have a plain old bad-hair day.Maybe work is a pain in the butt.You’re under major pressure to fill someone else’s shoes,your boss is picking on you, and everyone in the office is driving you crazy.You might have a splitting headache,or a slipped dish, bad breath, a toothache,chronic gas, dry lips, or a nasty ingrown toenail.Whatever the reason, you’re convinced that someone up there doesn’t like you.Oh what to do, what to do?

[參考譯文]

每個人都有憂郁的時候。

那些日子真是慘透了，你覺得心里亂糟糟的、怨氣叢生、寂寞、整個人徹底的精疲力竭。那些日子總會讓你感到自己的渺小和微不足道，每件事情似乎都夠不著邊。你根本無法振作起來。

根本沒有力氣重新開始。在憂郁的日子里，你可能變成偏執狂，覺得每個人都想要吃定你。其實情況并不總是那么糟。你感到灰心、焦慮，可能開始神經質地拼命咬指甲，然后不可救藥地陷入一眨眼吃掉三大塊巧克力蛋糕的瘋狂！在憂郁的日子里，你會覺得自己在悲傷的海里沉沉浮浮。不論在什么時候，你總有種想哭的沖動，卻不知道為了什么。最后，你覺得自己猶如行尸走肉，失去生活目標。

你不知道自己還可以撐多久，然后你想大喊一聲：“誰來一槍把我打死吧！” 其實一點小事就讓你一天都郁悶難當。也許只是一覺醒來，沒有感覺到或者看到自己最棒的一面，發現自己又多了幾條皺紋，又重了幾斤，或是鼻子上冒出了一個大包。你可能忘記了約會對象的名字，或是有張可笑的照片被登出來。你或許被人拋棄、離了婚，或是被開除，當眾出丑，被刻薄的綽號弄得心亂如麻，或許只因為你得整天頂著一個其丑無比的發型。也許工作讓你痛苦得如坐針氈。你在強大的壓力下頂替他人的位置，你的老板對你百般挑剔，辦公室里的每一個人都讓你發瘋。你可能會頭疼欲裂，或重心不穩跌個正著，口臭、牙痛、不停放屁、口干舌燥，或是指甲長到肉里頭了。不管什么原因，你確定上面有人不喜歡你。唉，該怎么辦，到底該怎么辦呢？

[美文欣賞]

“We are reading the first verse of the first chapter of a book whose pages are infinite...”

I do not know who wrote those words, but I have always liked them as a reminder that the future can be anything we want to make it.We can take the mysterious, hazy future and carve out of it anything that we can imagine, just as a sculptor carves a statue from a shapeless stone.We are all in the position of the farmer.If we plant a good seed, we reap a good harvest.If our seed is poor and full of weeds, we reap a useless crop.If we plant nothing at all, we harvest nothing at all.I want the future to be better than the past.I don’t want it contaminated by the mistakes and errors with which history is filled.We should all be concerned about the future because that is where we will spend the remainder of our lives.The past is gone and static.Nothing we can do will change it.The future is before us and dynamic.Everything we do will affect it.Each day brings with it new frontiers, in our homes and in our business, if we only recognize them.We are just at the beginning of the progress in every field of human endeavor.[參考譯文]

“我們正在讀一本書的第一章第一行，這本書的頁數是無限的……”

我不知道是誰寫的，可我很喜歡這句話，它提醒我們未來是由自己創造的。我們可以把神秘、不可知的未來塑造成我們想象中的任何模樣，猶如雕刻家將未成形的石頭刻成雕像。

我們每個人都像是農夫。灑下良種將有豐收，播下劣種或生滿野草便將毀去收成。沒有耕耘則會一無所獲。

我希望未來比過去更加美好，希望未來不會沾染歷史的錯誤與過失。我們都應舉目向前，因我們的余生要用未來書寫。

往昔已逝，靜如止水；我們無法再作改變。而前方的未來正生機勃勃；我們所做的每一件事都將會影響著它。只要我們認識到這些，無論是在家中還是在工作上，每天我們的面前都會展現出新的天地。

在人類致力開拓的每一片領域上，我們正站在進步的起跑點。

[美文欣賞]

Today I begin a new life.And I make a solemn oath to myself that nothing will retard my new life's growth.I will lose not a day from these readings for that day cannot be retrieved nor can I substitute another for it.I must not , I will not, break this habit of daily reading from these scrolls and, in truth, the few moments spent each day on this new habit are but a small price to pay for the happiness and success that will be mine.As I read and re-read the words in the scrolls to follow, never will I allow the brevity of each scroll nor the simplicity of its words to cause me to treat the scroll's message lightly.Thousands of grapes are pressed to fill one jar with wine, and the grapeskin and pulp are tossed to the birds.So it is with these grapes of wisdom from the ages.Much has been filtered and tossed to the wind.Only the pure truth lies distilled in the words to come.I will drink as instructed and spill not a drop.And the seed of success I will swallow.Today my old skin has become as dust.I will walk tall among men and they will know me not , for today I am a new man, with a new life.[參考譯文]

今天，我開始新的生活

我鄭重地發誓，絕不讓任何事情妨礙我新生命的成長。在閱讀這些讀物的時候，我絕不浪費一天的時間，因為時光一去不返，失去的日子是無法彌補的。我也絕不打破每天閱讀的習慣。事實上，每天在這些新習慣上花費少許時間，相對于可能獲得的愉樂與成功而言，只是微不足道的代價。

當我閱讀書卷中的字句時，絕不能因為文字的精煉而忽視內容的深沉。一瓶葡萄美酒需要千百顆果子釀制而成，果皮和渣子拋給小鳥。葡萄的智慧代代相傳，有些被過濾，有些被淘汰，隨風飄逝。只有純正的真理才是永恒的。它們就精煉在我要閱讀的文字中。我要依照指示，絕不浪費，飲下成功的種子。

今天，我的老繭化為塵埃。我在人群中昂首闊步，不會有人認出我來，因為我不再是過去的自己、我已擁有新的生命。