美国小学英语教材6:第73课 闪烁的翅膀(3)

 WORKING AND SAVING ON THE RANCH¹ 在农场工作攒钱

Clint's summer went by on wings, wings shining with hope, wings heavy with waiting, great droning wings beckoning² to him. 克林特的夏天是在对飞行的憧憬中度过的，他憧憬着闪烁着希望的翅膀，等待着那沉重的翅膀，那巨大的嗡嗡作响的飞机深深地吸引着他。

From before sunup till past sundown he and his father would cram³ the hours with work. 从日出前到日落前，他和他的父亲总是把时间填满工作。

Then after supper the two would drop down on the creaky old plank⁴ steps of the ranch house, 吃过晚饭，他们俩就会倒在牧场房子里吱吱作响的旧木板台阶上，

talking a little sometimes, often simply resting there, each one quietly thinking his own thoughts. 有时他们会交谈一会儿，经常是简单地休息一下，每个人都静静地思考着自己的想法。

For Clint, the bright spot now in ranch life was the regular zooming⁵ of the air-mail over the mountains. 对克林特来说，现在农场生活的亮点是定期飞越山区的航空邮件飞机。

How he watched for that glint of wings! "Some day," he would promise himself, ' 'I, too, shall fly! 他是多么专注地注视着那闪闪发光的翅膀啊!“总有一天，”他会向自己保证，“我也会飞的!”

Twice during the summer the people of the mountainside met for an all-day picnic and barbecue. 夏天的时候，山区的人们曾两次聚会，进行了一整天的野餐和烧烤。

On these occasions Clint talked freely with the younger people. 在这些场合，克林特和年轻人畅所欲言。

Here he learned that all the boys wanted to fly, or thought they did. 在这里，他了解到所有的男孩都想飞，或者认为他们想飞。

But Clint knew he wanted to fly, knew it more deeply every day. 但是克林特知道他想飞，而且这个想法一天比一天更清楚。

Of course he could not earn enough money to go into training this fall. 当然，今年秋天他赚不到足够的钱去训练。

But perhaps the next fall. Or surely the year after. So he worked and saved. 但也许明年秋天吧。或者第三年肯定可以。所以他一直工作，存钱。

He subscribed⁶ for a magazine on aviation, and he read up on aircraft until he knew every detail of how an airplane is constructed and operated. 他订阅了一本关于航空的杂志，并研读了有关飞机的书籍，直到他了解了飞机构造和操作的每一个细节。

On the first of November Mr. Warren started off to town in the morning on business. 11月1日上午，沃伦先生出差去了城里。

"Look out for the goats, Clint, if a rain should blow up,  was his farewell warning to his son. “如果下雨的话，当心山羊，克林特，”这是他临别时对儿子的提醒。

"You know they can't stand a wet norther. I shall be gone for a day or two. “你知道他们受不了潮湿的环境和酷寒的北风。我要离开一两天。

If the sky isn't clear in the morning, the herders know that they are not to take the goats out till the sun shines, even if they have to wait until noon. 如果早上天空不晴朗，牧民们知道在太阳出来前，他们不能把山羊带出来，即使他们要等到中午。

All you've got to see to is that they're penned at night. Good-by." 你要做的就是在晚上把它们关起来。再见。”

 

1 ranch   

n.大牧场，大农场

参考例句：

• He went to work on a ranch.他去一个大农场干活。
• The ranch is in the middle of a large plateau.该牧场位于一个辽阔高原的中部。

2 beckoning   

adj.引诱人的，令人心动的v.（用头或手的动作）示意，召唤( beckon的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• An even more beautiful future is beckoning us on. 一个更加美好的未来在召唤我们继续前进。 来自辞典例句
• He saw a youth of great radiance beckoning to him. 他看见一个丰神飘逸的少年向他招手。 来自辞典例句

3 cram   

v.填塞，塞满，临时抱佛脚，为考试而学习

参考例句：

• There was such a cram in the church.教堂里拥挤得要命。
• The room's full,we can't cram any more people in.屋里满满的，再也挤不进去人了。

4 plank   

n.板条，木板，政策要点，政纲条目

参考例句：

• The plank was set against the wall.木板靠着墙壁。
• They intend to win the next election on the plank of developing trade.他们想以发展贸易的纲领来赢得下次选举。

5 zooming   

adj.快速上升的v.（飞机、汽车等）急速移动( zoom的过去分词 )；（价格、费用等）急升，猛涨

参考例句：

• Zooming and panning are navigational tools for exploring 2D and 3D information. 缩放和平移是浏览二维和三维信息的导航工具。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• Panning and zooming, especially when paired together, create navigation difficulties for users. 对于用户来说，平移和缩放一起使用时，产生了更多的导航困难。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

6 subscribed   

v.捐助( subscribe的过去式和过去分词 )；签署，题词；订阅；同意

参考例句：

• It is not a theory that is commonly subscribed to. 一般人并不赞成这个理论。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I subscribed my name to the document. 我在文件上签了字。 来自《简明英汉词典》