英语四级听力练习集锦51

Passage 17 Being a Whole

Once a circle missed a wedge¹. The circle wanted to be whole, so it went around looking for its missing piece. But because it was incomplete² and therefore could roll only very slowly, it admired the flowers along the way. It chatted with worms. It enjoyed the sunshine. It found lots of different pieces, but none of them fit. So it left them all by the side of the road and kept on searching. Then one day the circle found a piece that fit perfectly³. It was so happy.Now it could be whole, with nothing missing. It incorporated⁴ the missing piece into itself and began to roll. Now that it was a perfect circle, it could roll very fast, too fast to notice the flowers，to talk to the worms. When it realized how different the world seemed when it rolled so quickly, it stopped, left its found piece by the side of the road and rolled slowly away. The lesson of the story, I suggested, was that in some strange sense we are more whole when we are missing something.

The man who has everything is in some ways a poor man. He will never know what it feels like to yearn⁵, to hope, to nourish⁶ his soul with the dream of something better. He will never know the experience of having someone who loves him and gives him something he has always wanted or never had.

There is a wholeness about the person who has come to terms with his limitations, who has been brave enough to let go of his unrealistic dreams and not feel like a failure for doing so. There is a wholeness about the man or woman who has learned that he or she is strong enough to go through a tragedy and survive, she/he can lose someone and still feel like a complete person. Life is not a trap set for us by God so that he can condemn⁷ us for failing. Life is not a spelling bee, where no matter how many words you’ve gotten right, you’re disqualified if you make one mistake. Life is more like a baseball season, where even the best team loses one-third of its games and even the worst team has its days of brilliance⁸. Our goal is to win more games than we lose. When we accept that imperfection is part of being human, and when we can continue rolling through life and appreciate it, we will have achieved a wholeness that others can only aspire⁹ to. That, I believe, is what God asks of us —not “be perfect”, not “don’t even make a mistake”, but “be whole.” If we are brave enough to love, strong enough to forgive, generous enough to rejoice¹⁰ in another’s happiness, and wise enough to know there is enough love to go around for us all, then we can achieve a fulfillment that no other living creature will ever know.

1 wedge   

n.楔子，楔形物；vt.楔住，嵌，挤进；vi.被卡住

参考例句：

• Put a wedge under the door so that it will stay open.在门下面插个楔，好让门开着。
• The box won't wedge into such a narrow space.那盒无法塞进那么小的地方去。

2 incomplete   

adj.不完全的，不完善的

参考例句：

• The building was left incomplete.那座楼没有完工就停下来了。
• His novel was incomplete when he died.他死的时候他的小说没有写完。

3 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

4 incorporated   

a.结合的，并为一体的

参考例句：

• Many of your suggestions have been incorporated in the plan. 你的很多建议已纳入计划中。
• These conditions must be expressly incorporated into the contract of employment. 这些条件都必须明确地写进雇佣合同之中。

5 yearn   

v.想念；怀念；渴望

参考例句：

• We yearn to surrender our entire being.我们渴望着放纵我们整个的生命。
• Many people living in big cities yearn for an idyllic country life.现在的很多都市人向往那种田园化的生活。

6 nourish   

vt.滋养，给予营养，养育，持有或怀有

参考例句：

• They needed good food to nourish their bodies.他们需要好食品滋养身体。
• I could find nothing to nourish my suspicion.我找不到任何怀疑的根据。

7 condemn   

vt.谴责，指责；宣判(罪犯)，判刑

参考例句：

• Some praise him,whereas others condemn him.有些人赞扬他，而有些人谴责他。
• We mustn't condemn him on mere suppositions.我们不可全凭臆测来指责他。

8 brilliance   

n.光辉，辉煌，壮丽，（卓越的）才华，才智

参考例句：

• I was totally amazed by the brilliance of her paintings.她的绘画才能令我惊歎不已。
• The gorgeous costume added to the brilliance of the dance.华丽的服装使舞蹈更加光彩夺目。

9 aspire   

vi.(to，after)渴望，追求，有志于

参考例句：

• Living together with you is what I aspire toward in my life.和你一起生活是我一生最大的愿望。
• I aspire to be an innovator not a follower.我迫切希望能变成个开创者而不是跟随者。

10 rejoice   

vi.感到高兴，充满喜悦

参考例句：

• We rejoice at every victory won by your people.我们为贵国人民取得的每一个胜利都感到高兴。
• Let us rejoice together on this great occasion!在这样一个盛大的节日里，让我们共同欢庆吧！