英语美文：When The Wind Blows 当风吹起的时候

  Years ago a farmer owned land along the Atlantic seacoast. He constantly advertised for hired hands. Most people were reluctant to work on farms along the Atlantic. They dreaded¹ the awful storms that raged across the Atlantic, wreaking² havoc³ on the buildings and crops. As the farmer interviewed applicants⁴ for the job, he received a steady stream of refusals.

　　Finally, a short, thin man, well past middle age, approached the farmer. "Are you a good farmhand?" the farmer asked him.

　　"Well, I can sleep when the wind blows," answered the little man.

　　Although puzzled by this answer, the farmer, desperate for help, hired him. The little man worked well around the farm, busy from dawn to dusk, and the farmer felt satisfied with the man's work.

　　Then one night the wind howled loudly in from offshore⁵. Jumping out of bed, the farmer grabbed a lantern and rushed next door to the hired hand's sleeping quarters. He shook the little man and yelled, "Get up! A storm is coming! Tie things down before they blow away!"

　　The little man rolled over in bed and said firmly, "No sir. I told you, I can sleep when the wind blows."

　　Enraged⁶ by the response, the farmer was tempted⁷ to fire him on the spot. Instead, he hurried outside to prepare for the storm. To his amazement⁸, he discovered that all of the haystacks had been covered with tarpaulins⁹. The cows were in the barn, the chickens were in the coops, and the doors were barred. The shutters¹⁰ were tightly secured. Everything was tied down. Nothing could blow away.

　　The farmer then understood what his hired hand meant, so he returned to his bed to also sleep while the wind blew.

　　MORAL: When you're prepared, spiritually, mentally, and physically¹¹, you have nothing to fear.

　　Can you sleep when the wind blows through your life? The hired hand in the story was able to sleep because he had secured the farm against the storm.

　几年前，一个农场主在大西洋沿岸拥有一块土地，他经常贴广告雇佣人手。可是，很多人都不愿意在大西洋岸边的农场干活，他们害怕大西洋上空剧烈的风暴会破坏房屋和庄稼。所以当这个农场主招工面试时，收到的是一连串坚定的拒绝。

　　最后，有一个个头不高、略显瘦弱、已过中年的男人来到农场主面前。“你是个干农活的好手吗？”农场主问他。

　　“是的，起风的时候我可以睡觉，”那个矮个男人回答道。

　　尽管农场主对他的回答有点迷惑，可苦于没有帮手，于是雇佣了他。那个矮个男人在农场干活很卖力，从天亮一直忙到天黑，因此农场主对他的工作很满意。

　　一天晚上，海面上刮起了咆哮的大风，农场主从床上跳了起来，抓起灯笼就向旁边雇工住的地方冲去。他晃着那个矮个男人喊道：“起来！刮风暴了！快把东西系好，别刮跑了！”

　　那个矮个男人在床上翻了一下身，平静地说道：“不，先生，我告诉过你，刮风的时候我可以睡觉。”

　　农场主被他的回答激怒了，气得真想当场把他解雇。不过，还是赶紧跑出去应付暴风雨吧。然而，令他惊奇的是，他发现所有的干草垛已经盖好了防水油布，牛在牲口棚里面，小鸡在鸡笼里，门闩好了，百叶窗也关紧了，一切都栓牢了，什么东西都刮不走了。

　　此刻，农场主才明白了雇工那句话的意思，于是，风刮起来的时候，他也回自己的床上睡觉了。

　　寓意：当精神上、心理上和物质上都做好准备的时候，一切就无所畏惧了。

　　当你的生活刮起风波的时候，你是否能睡着觉呢？故事中那个雇来的帮手能睡着，因为他已经为农场做好了抵御风暴的准备。

1 dreaded   

adj.令人畏惧的；害怕的v.害怕，恐惧，担心( dread的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• The dreaded moment had finally arrived. 可怕的时刻终于来到了。
• He dreaded having to spend Christmas in hospital. 他害怕非得在医院过圣诞节不可。 来自《用法词典》

2 wreaking   

诉诸（武力），施行（暴力），发（脾气）( wreak的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Coal mining is a messy business, often wreaking terrible environmental damage nearby. 采矿是肮脏的行业，往往会严重破坏周边环境。
• The floods are wreaking havoc in low-lying areas. 洪水正在地势低洼地区肆虐。

3 havoc   

n.大破坏，浩劫，大混乱，大杂乱

参考例句：

• The earthquake wreaked havoc on the city.地震对这个城市造成了大破坏。
• This concentration of airborne firepower wrought havoc with the enemy forces.这次机载火力的集中攻击给敌军造成很大破坏。

4 applicants   

申请人，求职人( applicant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There were over 500 applicants for the job. 有500多人申请这份工作。
• He was impressed by the high calibre of applicants for the job. 求职人员出色的能力给他留下了深刻印象。

5 offshore   

adj.海面的，吹向海面的；adv.向海面

参考例句：

• A big program of oil exploration has begun offshore.一个大规模的石油勘探计划正在近海展开。
• A gentle current carried them slowly offshore.和缓的潮流慢慢地把他们带离了海岸。

6 enraged   

使暴怒( enrage的过去式和过去分词 )； 歜； 激愤

参考例句：

• I was enraged to find they had disobeyed my orders. 发现他们违抗了我的命令，我极为恼火。
• The judge was enraged and stroke the table for several times. 大法官被气得连连拍案。

7 tempted   

v.怂恿（某人）干不正当的事；冒…的险（tempt的过去分词）

参考例句：

• I was sorely tempted to complain, but I didn't. 我极想发牢骚，但还是没开口。
• I was tempted by the dessert menu. 甜食菜单馋得我垂涎欲滴。

8 amazement   

n.惊奇，惊讶

参考例句：

• All those around him looked at him with amazement.周围的人都对他投射出惊异的眼光。
• He looked at me in blank amazement.他带着迷茫惊诧的神情望着我。

9 tarpaulins   

n.防水帆布，防水帆布罩( tarpaulin的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Main wood to aluminum and plexiglass, PC, tarpaulins, toughened glass. 主材以铝型材与进口有机玻璃、PC、防水布、钢化玻璃。 来自互联网
• That means providing tents or other materials, including plastic sheeting, tarpaulins and wood. 这意味着需要帐篷和其他物资，包括塑料布、放水油布和木材。 来自互联网

10 shutters   

百叶窗( shutter的名词复数 )； （照相机的）快门

参考例句：

• The shop-front is fitted with rolling shutters. 那商店的店门装有卷门。
• The shutters thumped the wall in the wind. 在风中百叶窗砰砰地碰在墙上。

11 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。