月色迷人The Fascinating Moonrise

 The Fascinating Moonrise

　　There is a hill near my home that I often climb at night. The noise of the city is a far-off murmur¹. In the hush² of dark I share the cheerfulness of crickets and the confidence of owls³. But it is the drama of the moonrise that I come to see. For that restores in me a quiet and clarity that the city spends too freely.

　　From this hill I have watched many moons rise. Each one had its own mood. There have been broad, confident harvest moons in autumn; shy, misty⁴ moons in spring; lonely, white winter moons rising into the utter silence of an ink-black sky and smoke-smudged orange moons over the dry fields of summer. Each, like fine music, excited my heart and then calmed my soul.

　　But we, who live indoors, have lost contact  with the moon. The glare of street lights and the dust of pollution veil the night sky. Though men have walked on the moon, it grows less familiar. Few of us can say what time the moon will rise tonight.

　　Still, it tugs⁵ at our minds.

　　If we unexpectedly encounter the full moon, huge and yellow over the horizon, we are helpless but to stare back at its commanding presence. And the moon has gifts to bestow⁶ upon those who watch.

　　I learned about its gifts one July evening in the mountains. My car had mysteriously stalled, and I was stranded⁷ and alone. The sun had set, and I was watching what seemed to be the bright-orange glow of a forest fire beyond a ridge⁸ to the east. Suddenly, the ridge itself seemed to burst into flame. Then, the rising moon, huge and red and grotesquely⁹ misshapen by the dust and sweat of the summer atmosphere, loomed¹⁰ up out of the woods. Distorted thus by the hot breath of earth, the moon seemed ill-tempered and imperfect. Dogs at nearby farmhouse¹¹ barked nervously¹², as if this strange light had wakened evil spirits in the weeds.

　　But as the moon lifted off the ridge it gathered firmness and authority. Its complexion¹³ changed from red, to orange, to gold, to impassive yellow. It seemed to draw light out of the darkening earth, for as it rose, the hills and valleys below grew dimmer. By the time the moon stood clear of the horizon, full-chested and round and of the colour of ivory, the valleys were deep shadows in the landscape. The dogs, reassured¹⁴ that this was the familiar moon, stopped barking. And all at once I felt a confidence and joy close to laughter.

　　The drama took an hour. Moonrise is slow and serried¹⁵ with subtleties¹⁶. To watch it, we must slip into an older, more patient sense of time.

　　To watch the moon move inflexibly¹⁷ higher is to find an unusual stillness within ourselves. Our imaginations become aware of the vast distance of space, the immensity of the earth and the huge improbability of our own existence. We feel small but privileged.

　　Moonlight shows us none of life’s harder edges. Hillsides seem silken and silvery, the oceans still and blue in its light. In moonlight we become less calculating, more drawn¹⁸ to our feelings.

　　[参考译文]

　　月升魅无穷

　　在我家的附近有座小山， 我常在晚间爬上山去。此时，城市的喧嚣成了遥远的低语。在这黑夜的静谧中，我尽情地分享蟋蟀的欢乐，感受猫头鹰的自信。不过，我上山是来看月出的，因为这可以让我的内心重新感到被城市消耗殆尽的平静与清新。

　　在这座山上，我欣赏过许多次月亮升起的景象。每一次月的姿容性情都不同。秋天，满月如轮，充满自信；春天，月亮清雾迷蒙羞羞答答；冬天，银白色的月亮挂在漆黑的、悄无声息的夜空中，显得那样孤寂；夏天，桔黄色的月似被烟尘笼罩，俯瞰干燥的田野。每一种月亮，都像美妙的音乐，颤动我的心灵，令我的灵魂平静。

　　但我们这些深居室内的人，已与月亮失去了联系。城市中耀眼的街灯和污染性烟尘遮住了夜空。虽然人类已在月亮上行走过，但月亮对我们却更加陌生了。现在已很少有人能说出今晚月亮何时升起。

　　但无论怎样，月亮依然打动我们的心灵。

　　如果我们偶然遇见一轮黄灿灿的满月高高挂在空中， 我们都会禁不住抬头凝望她那高贵的仪容。而月亮会向那些注视她的人赐予厚礼。

　　我得到她的厚礼是在山间七月的一个夜晚。我的车突然无缘无故地熄了火，将我孤身一人困在山中，束手无策。太阳已经落山，我注视着东边山头涌起的一团桔红色的明光，好像森林起火一般。突然，山头自己也似乎燃起火焰，一会儿，一轮又大又红的月亮从树林中慢慢现出身来，夏天空气中弥漫的灰尘与湿气令它显得异常怪异。大地灼热的呼吸扭曲了它，它变得非常暴躁，不再完美。附近农舍的狗紧张地狂吠起来，因为这团奇怪的光亮叫醒了野草中的魔鬼。

　　然而当月亮缓缓从山头升起，它聚集了越来越多的坚定与威严；它的面孔由红色变成了桔红，又变成金色，最后成为沉静的黄色。它似乎吸收了正在渐渐转暗的大地的光亮，因为随着它的升起，下面的丘陵山谷变得愈来愈朦胧。等到皓月当空，满月如盘，闪烁出象牙般的清辉，山谷便成了风景中一片幽深的阴影。那些狗明白了那团光原来是他们熟悉的月亮，也安定下来，停止了吠叫。霎时间，我也觉得信心倍增，心情舒畅，几乎笑了起来。

　　这奇特的景观持续了一个小时。月出是缓慢而充满神奇的。观看月出，我们必须回到一种古老的、耐心的时间观念中去。观看月亮不可阻挡地升上天空，会让我们找到内心的无比安宁，我们的想象力能让我们看到宇宙的辽阔和大地的广袤，能让我们忘掉自己的存在。我们觉得自身渺小，但又深感大自然的厚待。

　　月色下，我们看不到生活中坚硬的棱角。山坡在月光下如同笼上了一层柔和的银纱；大海在月光下宁静碧蓝；我们在月光下也不再像白日那般心计来往，而是沉醉于自然的情感中。

1 murmur   

n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言

参考例句：

• They paid the extra taxes without a murmur.他们毫无怨言地交了附加税。
• There was a low murmur of conversation in the hall.大厅里有窃窃私语声。

2 hush   

int.嘘，别出声；n.沉默，静寂；v.使安静

参考例句：

• A hush fell over the onlookers.旁观者们突然静了下来。
• Do hush up the scandal!不要把这丑事声张出去！

3 owls   

n.猫头鹰( owl的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• 'Clumsy fellows,'said I; 'they must still be drunk as owls.' “这些笨蛋，”我说，“他们大概还醉得像死猪一样。” 来自英汉文学 - 金银岛
• The great majority of barn owls are reared in captivity. 大多数仓鸮都是笼养的。 来自辞典例句

4 misty   

adj.雾蒙蒙的，有雾的

参考例句：

• He crossed over to the window to see if it was still misty.他走到窗户那儿，看看是不是还有雾霭。
• The misty scene had a dreamy quality about it.雾景给人以梦幻般的感觉。

5 tugs   

n.猛拉( tug的名词复数 )；猛拖；拖船v.用力拉，使劲拉，猛扯( tug的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The raucous sirens of the tugs came in from the river. 河上传来拖轮发出的沙哑的汽笛声。 来自辞典例句
• As I near the North Tower, the wind tugs at my role. 当我接近北塔的时候，风牵动着我的平衡杆。 来自辞典例句

6 bestow   

v.把…赠与，把…授予；花费

参考例句：

• He wished to bestow great honors upon the hero.他希望将那些伟大的荣誉授予这位英雄。
• What great inspiration wiII you bestow on me?你有什么伟大的灵感能馈赠给我？

7 stranded   

a.搁浅的，进退两难的

参考例句：

• He was stranded in a strange city without money. 他流落在一个陌生的城市里， 身无分文，一筹莫展。
• I was stranded in the strange town without money or friends. 我困在那陌生的城市，既没有钱，又没有朋友。

8 ridge   

n.山脊；鼻梁；分水岭

参考例句：

• We clambered up the hillside to the ridge above.我们沿着山坡费力地爬上了山脊。
• The infantry were advancing to attack the ridge.步兵部队正在向前挺进攻打山脊。

9 grotesquely   

adv. 奇异地,荒诞地

参考例句：

• Her arched eyebrows and grotesquely powdered face were at once seductive and grimly overbearing. 眉棱棱着，在一脸的怪粉上显出妖媚而霸道。 来自汉英文学 - 骆驼祥子
• Two faces grotesquely disfigured in nylon stocking masks looked through the window. 2张戴尼龙长袜面罩的怪脸望着窗外。

10 loomed   

v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的过去式和过去分词 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近

参考例句：

• A dark shape loomed up ahead of us. 一个黑糊糊的影子隐隐出现在我们的前面。
• The prospect of war loomed large in everyone's mind. 战事将起的庞大阴影占据每个人的心。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 farmhouse   

n.农场住宅（尤指主要住房）

参考例句：

• We fell for the farmhouse as soon as we saw it.我们对那所农舍一见倾心。
• We put up for the night at a farmhouse.我们在一间农舍投宿了一夜。

12 nervously   

adv.神情激动地，不安地

参考例句：

• He bit his lip nervously,trying not to cry.他紧张地咬着唇，努力忍着不哭出来。
• He paced nervously up and down on the platform.他在站台上情绪不安地走来走去。

13 complexion   

n.肤色；情况，局面；气质，性格

参考例句：

• Red does not suit with her complexion.红色与她的肤色不协调。
• Her resignation puts a different complexion on things.她一辞职局面就全变了。

14 reassured   

adj.使消除疑虑的；使放心的v.再保证，恢复信心( reassure的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• The captain's confidence during the storm reassured the passengers. 在风暴中船长的信念使旅客们恢复了信心。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• The doctor reassured the old lady. 医生叫那位老妇人放心。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 serried   

adj.拥挤的；密集的

参考例句：

• The fields were mostly patches laid on the serried landscape.between crevices and small streams.农田大部分是地缝和小溪之间的条状小块。
• On the shelf are serried rows of law books and law reports.书橱上是排得密密匝匝的几排法律书籍和判例汇编。

16 subtleties   

细微( subtlety的名词复数 )； 精细； 巧妙； 细微的差别等

参考例句：

• I think the translator missed some of the subtleties of the original. 我认为译者漏掉了原著中一些微妙之处。
• They are uneducated in the financial subtleties of credit transfer. 他们缺乏有关信用转让在金融方面微妙作用的知识。

17 inflexibly   

adv.不屈曲地，不屈地

参考例句：

• These are very dynamic people, but they manifest inflexibly in relating to the world. 这是一些很有力量的人，但他们在与这个世界的联系中表现地过于强硬而难于妥协。 来自互联网

18 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。