3-6

 

6.

We couldn’t fly together. For one thing, I was already going to be in Africa. I was scheduled to bein Malawi, doing conservation work with African Parks.

But I didn’t tell her the other reason: We couldn’t risk being seen together, the press findingout about us. Not yet.

So, she finished her Eat Pray Love thing, then flew from London to Johannesburg, then toMaun, where I’d asked Teej to meet her. (I wanted to do it myself, of course, but couldn’t withoutcreating a scene.) After an eleven-hour odyssey¹, including a three-hour layover in Johannesburg,and a hot car ride to the house, Meghan had every right to be grumpy. But she wasn’t. Bright-eyed, eager, she was ready for anything.

And looking like… perfection. She wore cut- off jean shorts, well- loved hiking boots, acrumpled Panama hat that I’d seen on her Instagram page.

As I opened the gate to Teej and Mike’s house, I handed her a chicken- salad sandwich,wrapped in clingfilm. Thought you might be hungry. I suddenly wished I had flowers, a present,something besides this measly sandwich. We hugged, and it was awkward, not just because of thesandwich but the unavoidable suspense². We’d talked and FaceTimed countless³ times since ourfirst dates, but this was all new and different. And a bit strange.

We were both thinking the same things. Is it going to translate? To another continent?

And what if it doesn’t?

I asked about the flight. She laughed about the Air Botswana crew. They were big fans ofSuits, so they’d asked her to pose for a photo.

Yay, I said, thinking: Shit. If one member of the crew posted that photo, the cat would be outof the bag.

We all jumped into a three-bench truck, Mike driving, my bodyguards⁴ trailing, and set off.

Straight into the sun. After an hour of tarmac roads, we were facing four hours of dirt tracks. Tomake the time go faster I pointed⁵ out every flower, plant, bird. That’s a francolin. That’s ahornbill. It’s like Zazu from The Lion King. That’s a lilac-breasted roller, and he seems to bedoing his mating display.

After a respectful period of time, I held her hand.

Next, when the road got flatter, I ventured a kiss.

Just as we both remembered.

My bodyguards, fifty meters behind us, pretended not to see.

As we got further into the bush, as we neared the Okavango, the fauna⁶ began changing.

There! Look!

Oh, my God. Is that…giraffes!

And over there, look!

A family of warthogs.

We saw a breeding herd⁷ of elephants. Dads, mums, babies. Hi, guys. We started along afirebreak road and the birds were going nuts, which sent a weird⁸ shiver down my spine⁹. Lions inthe area.

No way, she said.

Something told me to look back. Sure enough, a flickering¹⁰ tail. I shouted for Mike to stop. Hehit the brakes, threw the truck into reverse. There—standing right before us, a big fella. Daddy.

And there, four youngsters, lounging under a shady bush. With their mums.

We admired them for a while, then drove on.

Shortly before dusk we arrived at a small satellite camp Teej and Mike had made up. I carriedour bags to a bell tent beside a huge sausage tree. We were on the edge of a big forest, lookingdown a gentle slope to the river, and beyond: a floodplain teeming¹¹ with life.

Meghan—whom I was now calling Meg, or sometimes just M—was stunned¹². The vividcolors. The pure, fresh air. She’d traveled, but she’d never seen anything like this. This was theworld before the world was made.

She opened her small suitcase—she needed to get something. Here it comes, I thought. Themirror, the hairdryer, the makeup¹³ kit¹⁴, the fluffy¹⁵ duvet, the dozen pairs of shoes. I was shamefullystereotyping: American actress equals diva. To my shock, and delight, there was nothing in thatsuitcase but bare essentials. Shorts, ripped jeans and snacks. And a yoga mat.

We sat in canvas chairs, watched the sun set and the moon rise. I whipped up some bushcocktails. Whisky with a splash of river water. Teej offered Meg a glass of wine and showed herhow to cut the end off a plastic water bottle and turn it into a goblet¹⁷. We told stories, laughed a lot,then Teej and Mike cooked us a lovely dinner.

We ate around the fire, staring at the stars.

At bedtime I guided Meg through the darkness to the tent.

Where’s the flashlight? Meg asked.

You mean the torch?

We both laughed.

The tent was very small, and very Spartan¹⁸. If she’d been expecting some glamping trip, shewas now fully¹⁶ divested¹⁹ of that fantasy. We lay down inside, on our backs, feeling the moment,reckoning with the moment.

There were separate bedrolls, the result of much worry and many conversations with Teej.

Didn’t want to be presumptuous²⁰.

We pushed them together, lay shoulder to shoulder. We stared at the roof, listening, talking,watching moon shadows flutter across the nylon.

Then, a loud munching²¹ sound.

Meg bolted upright. What’s that?

Elephant, I said.

Just one, from what I could tell. Just outside. Eating peacefully from the shrubs²² around us.

She won’t hurt us.

She won’t?

Soon after, the tent shook from a loud roar.

Lions.

Are we going to be OK?

Yes. Don’t worry.

She lay down, put her head on my chest.

Trust me, I told her. I’ll keep you safe.

 

1 odyssey   

n.长途冒险旅行；一连串的冒险

参考例句：

• The march to Travnik was the final stretch of a 16-hour odyssey.去特拉夫尼克的这段路是长达16小时艰险旅行的最后一程。
• His odyssey of passion, friendship,love,and revenge was now finished.他的热情、友谊、爱情和复仇的漫长历程，到此结束了。

2 suspense   

n.（对可能发生的事）紧张感，担心，挂虑

参考例句：

• The suspense was unbearable.这样提心吊胆的状况实在叫人受不了。
• The director used ingenious devices to keep the audience in suspense.导演用巧妙手法引起观众的悬念。

3 countless   

adj.无数的，多得不计其数的

参考例句：

• In the war countless innocent people lost their lives.在这场战争中无数无辜的人丧失了性命。
• I've told you countless times.我已经告诉你无数遍了。

4 bodyguards   

n.保镖，卫士，警卫员( bodyguard的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Brooks came to Jim's office accompanied—like always—by his two bodyguards. 和往常一样，在两名保镖的陪同下，布鲁克斯去吉姆的办公室。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Three of his bodyguards were injured in the attack. 在这次袭击事件中，他有3名保镖受了伤。 来自辞典例句

5 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

6 fauna   

n.(一个地区或时代的)所有动物，动物区系

参考例句：

• This National Park is an area with unique fauna and flora.该国家公园区域内具有独特的动物种群和植物种群。
• Fauna is a biological notion means all the animal life in a particular region or period. 动物群是一个生物学的概念，指的是一个特定时期或者地区的所有动物。

7 herd   

n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• He had no opinions of his own but simply follow the herd.他从无主见，只是人云亦云。

8 weird   

adj.古怪的，离奇的；怪诞的，神秘而可怕的

参考例句：

• From his weird behaviour,he seems a bit of an oddity.从他不寻常的行为看来，他好像有点怪。
• His weird clothes really gas me.他的怪衣裳简直笑死人。

9 spine   

n.脊柱，脊椎；(动植物的)刺；书脊

参考例句：

• He broke his spine in a fall from a horse.他从马上跌下摔断了脊梁骨。
• His spine developed a slight curve.他的脊柱有点弯曲。

10 flickering   

adj.闪烁的，摇曳的，一闪一闪的

参考例句：

• The crisp autumn wind is flickering away. 清爽的秋风正在吹拂。
• The lights keep flickering. 灯光忽明忽暗。

11 teeming   

adj.丰富的v.充满( teem的现在分词 )；到处都是；（指水、雨等）暴降；倾注

参考例句：

• The rain was teeming down. 大雨倾盆而下。
• the teeming streets of the city 熙熙攘攘的城市街道

12 stunned   

adj. 震惊的，惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The fall stunned me for a moment. 那一下摔得我昏迷了片刻。
• The leaders of the Kopper Company were then stunned speechless. 科伯公司的领导们当时被惊得目瞪口呆。

13 makeup   

n.组织；性格；化装品

参考例句：

• Those who failed the exam take a makeup exam.这次考试不及格的人必须参加补考。
• Do you think her beauty could makeup for her stupidity?你认为她的美丽能弥补她的愚蠢吗？

14 kit   

n.用具包，成套工具；随身携带物

参考例句：

• The kit consisted of about twenty cosmetic items.整套工具包括大约20种化妆用品。
• The captain wants to inspect your kit.船长想检查你的行装。

15 fluffy   

adj.有绒毛的，空洞的

参考例句：

• Newly hatched chicks are like fluffy balls.刚孵出的小鸡像绒毛球。
• The steamed bread is very fluffy.馒头很暄。

16 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

17 goblet   

n.高脚酒杯

参考例句：

• He poured some wine into the goblet.他向高脚酒杯里倒了一些葡萄酒。
• He swirled the brandy around in the huge goblet.他摇晃着高脚大玻璃杯使里面的白兰地酒旋动起来。

18 spartan   

adj.简朴的，刻苦的；n.斯巴达；斯巴达式的人

参考例句：

• Their spartan lifestyle prohibits a fridge or a phone.他们不使用冰箱和电话，过着简朴的生活。
• The rooms were spartan and undecorated.房间没有装饰，极为简陋。

19 divested   

v.剥夺( divest的过去式和过去分词 )；脱去（衣服）；2。从…取去…；1。（给某人）脱衣服

参考例句：

• He divested himself of his jacket. 他脱去了短上衣。
• He swiftly divested himself of his clothes. 他迅速脱掉衣服。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 presumptuous   

adj.胆大妄为的，放肆的，冒昧的，冒失的

参考例句：

• It would be presumptuous for anybody to offer such a view.任何人提出这种观点都是太放肆了。
• It was presumptuous of him to take charge.他自拿主张，太放肆了。

21 munching   

v.用力咀嚼（某物），大嚼( munch的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He was munching an apple. 他在津津有味地嚼着苹果。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Munching the apple as he was, he had an eye for all her movements. 他虽然啃着苹果，但却很留神地监视着她的每一个动作。 来自辞典例句

22 shrubs   

灌木( shrub的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gardener spent a complete morning in trimming those two shrubs. 园丁花了整个上午的时间修剪那两处灌木林。
• These shrubs will need more light to produce flowering shoots. 这些灌木需要更多的光照才能抽出开花的新枝。