第8章 山丘上的靴子 Boots on the Hill

佚名/Anonymous

Despite the three feet of snow, we plodded our way down to the sledding hill. I discovered a few things during that short three-block walk.

First, it isn't easy to blaze a trail through snow that deep. You have to have strong leg muscles, good lungs, and patience.

Our son, Douglas, had no problem at all. Although the snow was taller than him in some places, he plunged on. I followed more slowly.

Second, I discovered my boots had a small leak. Nothing huge, but big enough to allow snow to creep in and create a soggy, cold wet feeling.

We finally arrived at the sledding hill. My husband Marty and Douglas were off, sliding down the hill. I found a comfortable looking mound of snow to sit on so I sat down to watch. Snowflakes drifted down and settled on my coat.

My eyes settled on a strange sight. There, on top of the snow, sat a pair of children's boots. There was no one else in sight, just these boots by themselves. They sat on top of the snow so they couldn't have been left there very long.

Where, I pondered, was the owner of the boots? And how did he get home?

My imagination took over. I envisioned a child, eight or nine years old, sledding probably just an hour ago. He was having a great time, laughing and joking and sliding down the hill. Like me, he discovered his boots had a leak.

Trudging up the hill wasn't so much fun anymore. Each step further drenched his socks and worsened his mood.

It got so bad, he couldn't stand it anymore. He had to make a change.

Now, most people would go home and then take their boots off but not this child! He must have removed his boots immediately.

This may have seemed like the right thing to do at the time but I'm sure he learned a valuable lesson during his journey home in socks even soggier than before.

As I stared at the abandoned boots, something became clear to me. In my struggle to achieve all that I want to accomplish, I often act just like that boy. I behave on impulse.

I have believed that action is always better than no action. I realized that sometimes there is wisdom in not acting. In fact, a rash action can result in a situation even worse than before.

As the three of us headed home, I glanced one last time at the boots. The snow was slowly burying them.

I may never discover the answer to the mystery of the boots. But I will remember them.

为了去滑雪橇，我们已顾不上已有三英尺厚的雪了。我们艰难地一直向山坡走去。在只有三个街区的路程中，我发现了一些事情。

首先我发现，你得有强壮的腿部肌肉、良好的肺活量和耐心，要不然很难在那么深的雪上行走。

我们的儿子道格拉斯走这样的路根本没问题。他能跳上那些比他还高的雪堆。而我却慢腾腾地跟在后面。

第二个发现是我的靴子漏了一个小洞。尽管漏洞不大，但足以让雪慢慢地渗进来，弄得靴子里潮湿冰冷。

终于，我们到达了滑雪橇的山坡。丈夫马丁和道格拉斯都从山坡滑下去了，我则找了个舒服的雪堆坐下来看雪景。雪花飘下来，落在我的衣服上。

这时我看到一个奇怪的景象：雪地上有一双小孩穿的靴子。奇怪的是我没有看到任何人。这双鞋在雪的上面，看来是刚丢在那儿不久。

我就在想，这双靴子的主人去哪儿了？他又是怎么回家的呢？

我开始发挥自己的想象力：一小时前，有个八九岁的孩子正在这里滑雪。他玩得很开心，一边笑着一边闹着滑下了山坡。就像我一样，他也发现靴子上有个小洞。

他再上山时，就不好玩了。每走一步，袜子就会更湿，他的心情也变得越来越糟。

这种感觉糟糕透了，他实在忍受不了了。他得想个办法才行。

尽管多数人都是回到家才脱下靴子，但小男孩没有，他要马上脱掉靴子。

当时看来，这似乎是个不错的做法。但我确信他一定会从中得到宝贵的教训，因为在回家路上，他会发现袜子比之前湿得更严重。

我看着这双被丢弃的靴子，突然明白了：当我努力想完成一件事情时，常常会像那个小男孩一样冲动行事。

我以前相信做总比不做好。但我现在意识到，有时明智的行动恰恰就是按兵不动。事实上，冲动行事往往会导致更严重的后果。

当我们三个人往家走时，我最后看了一眼那双靴子，它们已经慢慢地被雪盖住了。

那双靴子为什么会在那里，我可能永远也不会知道，但我会一直记得这件事。

记忆填空

1.First, it isn't____________to blaze a trail through snow that____________. You have to have strong leg muscles, good lungs, and____________.

2.My eyes settled on a strange____________. There, on top of the snow, sat a____________of children's boots. There was no one else in sight, just these____________by themselves. They sat on top of the snow so they couldn't have been____________there very long.

3.As the three of us____________home, I glanced one last time at the boots. The____________was slowly burying them.

佳句翻译

1.雪花飘下来，落在我的衣服上。

译___________________________________________________

2.他玩得很开心，一边笑着一边闹着滑下了山坡。

译___________________________________________________

3.我看着这双被丢弃的靴子，突然明白了：当我努力想完成一件事情时，常常会像那个小男孩一样冲动行事。

译___________________________________________________

短语应用

1.There was no one else in sight, just these boots by themselves.

in sight：看得见；在望；临近

造___________________________________________________

2.I behave on impulse.

on impulse：一时冲动；心血来潮

造___________________________________________________