读者文摘:他们生活中的聚会(1)

Skid¹ Row. The very phrase conjures² images of drunks passed out in gutters³, lowlifes lying in wait, addicts⁴ in darkened alleys⁵.

贫民区。这个词语让人联想到醉汉昏倒在水沟里，卑微的人在等待，瘾君子躲在黑暗的小巷里，

It's the definition of a place where dreams go to die.

这个词界定了梦想死亡之地。

In Los Angeles's infamous⁶ Skid Row, the scene can be even bleaker⁷.

在洛杉矶臭名昭著的贫民区，情况可能更为惨淡。

There are hundreds of children living there—on the streets or in shelters—at any given time.

任何时候都有成百上千的儿童生活在街头或庇护所里，

But amid all the poverty and desperation, one couple is determined⁸ to use their own experience with loss to foster a sense of hope.

但是在所有的贫困和绝望中，有一对夫妇决心用他们自己的经历来培植希望。

In 2012, Mary Davis, who works at an enrichment center for young children,

2012年，在一家幼儿活动中心工作的玛丽·戴维斯

and her husband, Ari Kadin, who is in property management, were expecting their first child when Davis miscarried.

和她做物业管理的丈夫阿里·卡丁，正等着第一个孩子的到来，戴维斯却流产了，

They were devastated⁹. But the couple, who were volunteering with adults in a Skid Row homeless shelter,

他们极度不安。但这对在贫民区收容所做志愿者的夫妇，

refused to let their heartbreak break them.

不想就这样伤心欲绝。

"In 2013, our child would have been one year old," says Davis, 38.

38岁的戴维斯说：“2013年，我们的孩子应该就一岁了。

"And we kept seeing these kids at the shelter, and I said to my husband,

我们一直去收容所看这些孩子，我对丈夫说，

'We couldn't throw a birthday party for our child, so let's do it for these kids.'"

‘我们不能为我们的孩子举行生日派对，那我们就为这些孩子开派对吧。”

They took over a room in the Union Rescue Mission and filled it with streamers, gifts, a cake—all the makings of a great party.

他们占用了联合救济会的一个房间，房间里摆满了彩带、礼物和蛋糕——所有这些都是超棒聚会必不可少的物品，

Or so they thought. "I forgot the music!" Davis says, laughing. It didn't matter.

或者他们是这么认为的。“我忘了音乐！”戴维斯笑着说。没关系，

Many of the 15 kids who showed up had never had a single birthday party before,

到场的15个孩子中，很多人以前从没经历过生日派对，

and they were so excited to have one now that they made their own music—singing and clapping and, of course, laughing.

现在他们非常兴奋能有生日聚会，于是他们自己创作音乐、唱歌、鼓掌，当然还有大笑。

Since then, the couple have thrown a bash each and every month.

从那以后，这对夫妇每个月都要举行一次狂欢。

They routinely attract 250 kids and their parents—they’ve had to take over more rooms in the shelter and the rooftop.

他们通常会吸引250个孩子和他们的父母——他们不得不占用避难所的更多房间，还有屋顶。

An hour before each party, volunteers arrive to set up the decorations and activities:

每次聚会前一小时，志愿者们都会来布置现场，并安排活动：

face painting, balloon artists, a DJ, cake, and pizza.

面部彩绘、气球师、DJ、蛋糕和披萨。

There are small presents for the kids celebrating their birthdays that month,

有一些小礼物送给孩子们以庆祝他们的生日，

but Davis makes sure there are more than enough to go around.

但是戴维斯会确保有更多事情可做。

1 skid   

v.打滑 n.滑向一侧；滑道 ，滑轨

参考例句：

• He braked suddenly,causing the front wheels to skid.他突然剎车，使得前轮打了滑。
• The police examined the skid marks to see how fast the car had been travelling.警察检查了车轮滑行痕迹，以判断汽车当时开得有多快。

2 conjures   

用魔术变出( conjure的第三人称单数 )； 祈求，恳求； 变戏法； （变魔术般地） 使…出现

参考例句：

• The word 'birthday' conjures up images of presents and parties. “生日”这个词使人想起礼物和聚会的情景。
• The name Sahara conjures up images of a desert of aridity. "撒哈拉"这个名字使人想起干旱的沙漠情景。

3 gutters   

（路边）排水沟( gutter的名词复数 )； 阴沟； （屋顶的）天沟； 贫贱的境地

参考例句：

• Gutters lead the water into the ditch. 排水沟把水排到这条水沟里。
• They were born, they grew up in the gutters. 他们生了下来，以后就在街头长大。

4 addicts   

有…瘾的人( addict的名词复数 )； 入迷的人

参考例句：

• a unit for rehabilitating drug addicts 帮助吸毒者恢复正常生活的机构
• There is counseling to help Internet addicts?even online. 有咨询机构帮助网络沉迷者。 来自超越目标英语 第3册

5 alleys   

胡同，小巷( alley的名词复数 )； 小径

参考例句：

• I followed him through a maze of narrow alleys. 我紧随他穿过一条条迂迴曲折的窄巷。
• The children lead me through the maze of alleys to the edge of the city. 孩子们领我穿过迷宫一般的街巷，来到城边。

6 infamous   

adj.声名狼藉的，臭名昭著的，邪恶的

参考例句：

• He was infamous for his anti-feminist attitudes.他因反对女性主义而声名狼藉。
• I was shocked by her infamous behaviour.她的无耻行径令我震惊。

7 bleaker   

阴冷的( bleak的比较级 )； （状况）无望的； 没有希望的； 光秃的

参考例句：

• Horoscopes are merely harmless escapism from an ever-bleaker world. 占星术只不过是让人逃避越发令人沮丧的世界的无害消遣罢了。
• On the ground the mood is bleaker. 具体形势更加严峻。

8 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

9 devastated   

v.彻底破坏( devastate的过去式和过去分词)；摧毁；毁灭；在感情上（精神上、财务上等）压垮adj.毁坏的；极为震惊的

参考例句：

• The bomb devastated much of the old part of the city. 这颗炸弹炸毁了旧城的一大片地方。
• His family is absolutely devastated. 他的一家感到极为震惊。