英语博客：Learning in the past.

 　　I was fortunate enough (1)the other day to go on a field trip with the school that my son attends. As his school doesn't have a bus, parent volunteers are needed to transport the kids here and there. I am one of them, and, you know, I benefit from volunteering in many ways. That particular day, I learned a lot about the Wenatchi Indians, and the pioneer days of this area. We visited a museum in the town of Cashmere which is about eight miles from here. It's a small building, but jam packed(2) with artifacts and donations. I had been to the museum before, but this time, we had a very knowledgeable¹ (3)guide who happened to be a Native American Indian. As time went on, and he took us from one display area to another, I began to realize that he had deep knowledge and deep personal interest in the museum. He was half Cherokee and half Sioux, and knew not only about those Indian nations, but also a lot about the Wenatchi nation. He told us that the baskets that were made by Wenatchi women are worth thousands of dollars. He went into detail, telling us how they would gather(4) the grasses, chew them, dye them with berry juice, and then weave them. These baskets were made so well, that they could carry water. In fact, the Wenatchis would boil water in the baskets by placing boiling hot stones from a fire inside a basket full of water. That kind of information, and many other things that I learned, gave me new respect for the history of this local area. Then, we moved to the outside area of the museum where there's a collection of original pioneer (5)homes. There was a home, a jail, a hat shop, a print shop, a school, and a hotel. My son's class loved the school. It was obviously very basic, all wood, dark, it had a stove, small chalk boards for the students, and a metal bucket that everyone drank out of. The guide told us that school was only available for a few months a year; during Winter it was too cold, and, as all the children helped to farm, they couldn't go to school during planting or harvest seasons either. My son thought that that (6)was great, “Only a few months of school? Awesome²!” he said. If children could basically learn to read and write, and do a little mathematics, then the main goal was accomplished³. Their lives were agricultural and they were hard working, so school was considered a luxury. How different it is today!

　　'To be fortunate/lucky/unlucky enough' the use of 'enough' speeds up a sentence that could otherwise be a bit awkward⁴.

　　a. I was fortunate. I got into the theater for free. OR I was fortunate in that I got into the theater for free. INSTEAD with the use of 'enough' we can say : I was fortunate enough to get into the theater for free.

　　b. She was unlucky enough to miss the bus, so she was late for work.

　　'Jam packed' is an expression that means tightly⁵ squeezed or squashed⁶ into a place. It can describe the subject or object.

　　a. The cinema was jam packed last night.

　　b. The students were jam packed into the assembly hall for the graduation ceremony.

　　'Knowledgeable' describes a person who knows a lot. Let's practice the pronunciation.

　　'To gather' is the same as to collect or to pick (as in flowers); it also means to congregate⁷.

　　a. The Wenatchi Indian women would gather grasses to make their baskets.

　　b. A group of protesters gathered in the main square.

　　5.'Pioneer' means the first person to do something, or to settle somewhere.

　　a. The pioneers in this area were the first Europeans to settle and farm here.

　　b. Santiago Ramon y Cajal was the great pioneer in the field of neurobiology.?

1 knowledgeable   

adj.知识渊博的；有见识的

参考例句：

• He's quite knowledgeable about the theatre.他对戏剧很有心得。
• He made some knowledgeable remarks at the meeting.他在会上的发言颇有见地。

2 awesome   

adj.令人惊叹的，难得吓人的，很好的

参考例句：

• The church in Ireland has always exercised an awesome power.爱尔兰的教堂一直掌握着令人敬畏的权力。
• That new white convertible is totally awesome.那辆新的白色折篷汽车简直棒极了.

3 accomplished   

adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的

参考例句：

• Thanks to your help,we accomplished the task ahead of schedule.亏得你们帮忙,我们才提前完成了任务。
• Removal of excess heat is accomplished by means of a radiator.通过散热器完成多余热量的排出。

4 awkward   

adj.笨拙的，尴尬的，使用不便的，难处理的

参考例句：

• John is so shy and awkward that everyone notices him.约翰如此害羞狼狈，以至于大家都注意到了他。
• I was the only man among the guests and felt rather awkward.作为客人中的唯一男性，我有些窘迫。

5 tightly   

adv.紧紧地，坚固地，牢固地

参考例句：

• My child holds onto my hand tightly while we cross the street.横穿马路时，孩子紧拉着我的手不放。
• The crowd pressed together so tightly that we could hardly breathe.人群挤在一起，我们几乎喘不过气来。

6 squashed   

压碎的，压扁的

参考例句：

• The tomatoes at the bottom of the bag had been squashed. 袋底的西红柿给压烂了。
• I squashed a few more clothes into my case. 我往箱里多塞了几件衣服。

7 congregate   

v.(使)集合，聚集

参考例句：

• Now they can offer a digital place for their readers to congregate and talk.现在他们可以为读者提供一个数字化空间，让读者可以聚集和交谈。
• This is a place where swans congregate.这是个天鹅聚集地。