VOA慢速英语 2007 0319b

VOICE ONE:

Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Faith Lapidus. Every family has a story. Today we travel to a farm in the Midwest, the center of American agriculture, to meet the Fitzpatrick family.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Thick snow falls on the quiet Michigan countryside as we make our way to visit Leo Fitzpatrick and his family.

The Fitzpatricks are among the minority of Americans who live a rural life. Instead of a big city, they live near small towns. And, unlike many families today, they all still live near each other.

As we drive along a country road, we can see many buggies in a line near a farmhouse¹. These belong to Leo's Amish neighbors. The people are attending religious services in a home. The Amish live as people did many years ago.

The horses that pull the buggies are nowhere to be seen -- probably warming up inside a barn.

VOICE TWO:      

It seems hard to believe that any crop could survive this icy weather. The land is asleep. But not completely. Winter wheat grows in a field that belongs to the Fitzpatrick family.

Leo Fitzpatrick, the head of the family, farmed for most of his long life. Now he is leaving the work to his sons. The oldest son planted the wheat.

The Fitzpatrick family is well known in this corner of rural America. Some of them live on the family's one hundred fifteen hectares of land. Almost all have helped farm at some time or another, but most also hold other jobs. Some work in manufacturing. Another is an excavator; he has a digging and earth-moving business. Others work in a dentist's office, a post office and a courthouse.

VOICE ONE:

Leo Fitzpatrick's grandfather claimed land here more than one hundred years ago. In two thousand five, Leo was honored as the owner of the Michigan Centennial Farm of the Year. The honor goes to land that has been farmed by the same family for at least a century.

That might not sound like very long compared to other countries. But keep in mind that the United States is not yet two-and-a-half centuries old.  

VOICE TWO:

Leo Fitzpatrick holds a picture of his prize-winning barn

Leo Fitzpatrick will be eighty years old in October. He looks powerful and muscular. And he soon proves it, as he leads a visitor around his farm through the deepening snow in the fierce cold and wind. A big red barn stands out even in the gathering² darkness.  Other, smaller red buildings house bright green farm machinery³.

Leo explains that his grandfather, Dennis Fitzpatrick, built the barn more than ninety years ago. The family made repairs over the years. By the nineteen nineties, though, it became clear that the wooden structure would need a lot of work or it would have to be torn down.

Leo decided⁴ that he would restore the barn. He did much of the work himself, over a period of nine years. He also worked in a factory some of that time.

He used wood from trees in the area to strengthen and support the roof and the walls. To reach the roof he stood on bales of hay.

VOICE ONE:

Today the barn is a big star. In the last few years it has been named Michigan Barn of the Year and honored with the Barn Alive! Farm Heritage Award. The award is given by the National Trust for Historic Preservation⁵ and Successful Farming magazine.

Fitzpatrick's barn

In winter the Fitzpatricks use the barn to keep straw that they sell. The straw is made from the remainders of their wheat and oats. Nine thousand bales of straw reach almost to the roof of the barn. Near the roof is a round window. When the Fitzpatrick children were young, they climbed up to this window to look out at the surrounding land.

The barn is big enough to hold several hundred people. In warmer weather, the family uses it for social events like dances and special celebrations.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Another building on the Fitzpatrick property is a workshop. It contains what seems like every tool ever manufactured. The tools line the walls. 

The workshop feels warm and welcoming. A corn burner heats the building. Kernels⁶ of corn make a very hot fire, Leo says.

Now we are on the move again, following Leo and his footsteps through the snow. His house is not far. It just feels that way in the wind.

(SOUND)

VOICE ONE:

Inside the house, family members are seated around a table. On this snowy day, the extended family has gathered for a meal. Everyone brought food -- lots of food. Corn pudding is being heated up in the oven. It smells wonderful. 

Judy Fitzpatrick Weber (left) playing Scrabble next to Paul Webber and Mary Fitzpatrick (Leo's daughter-in-law)

Some people have been playing a lively game of Scrabble, a word game. There is much laughter and talking. One of the Fitzpatrick daughters holds a one-point lead over her brother's wife. 

Others in the family have been talking about family happenings and local news. The youngest family members are playing computer games on a huge television.

VOICE TWO:

Leo Fitzpatrick's wife, Mary, died in nineteen ninety-six. But he never has to worry about being alone.

(SOUND)

"My name is Linda. I'm the second child to Leo."
"I am Leo Fitzpatrick's third daughter, third in line. And my name is Judy Weber."
"I am Leo's friend, Judy Grant."
"Leo Fitzpatrick. I'm the daddy of the seven children assembled here."
"I'm Leah Fitzpatrick, and I'm Vernon Fitzpatrick's wife."
"I'm Vernon Fitzpatrick, and I'm Leah Fitzpatrick's husband."
"I'm Dan Fitzpatrick, I'm the oldest son of three."
"I'm Terry Fitzpatrick, I'm the second son of three."
"I'm Debbie Fitzpatrick. I'm the oldest daughter."
"I'm Rhonda Reppert, I'm number six in the family, youngest daughter."
"I'm Sarah Fitzpatrick. I'm Leo's granddaughter."

VOICE ONE:  

Where is Mark, the youngest of Leo's three sons? Mark is somewhere else in the house.

Some of the family moved out the area for a while, but in time they returned. Leo's daughter Rhonda married a man named John Reppert. For years they lived near the biggest city in Michigan, Detroit.

VOICE TWO:

Rhonda Reppert says it was good to come back. The Repperts now live in a big house that was built for them. The house is made from logs of cedar⁷ wood.

John Reppert likes to hunt and fish. But if he wants to see wildlife, all he has to do is look out his window. Rhonda says deer often come right up to the house.

VOICE ONE:

Rhonda's brother Dan never left the area. After high school he spent more than twenty years as a welder⁸ and part-time farmer. Then he got his wish. He became a full-time⁹ farmer. He plants corn, wheat and oats on more than three hundred twenty hectares of land, including some family land.

His father says Dan has greatly improved the farm's production with up-to-date agricultural methods and equipment. Dan planted soybeans once, not too long ago. The crop did well. But it was a loss. It was destroyed by hungry deer.

The Fitzpatricks used to raise turkeys, but not anymore, not since wild turkeys invaded their farm.

VOICE TWO:

Debbie, the oldest of the Fitzpatrick children, lives with her father and her sister Linda. Debbie works at a post office. Linda works at a machinery company in the nearby town of Beaverton, Michigan.

The two sisters have never moved from their childhood home. But they remember how the family would take a two-week vacation every year when the children were growing up. Linda and Debbie now continue that tradition. They often go to Canada with other family members and have traveled as far as New Zealand.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

These days only about two percent of Americans farm for a living. Part-time farming and community farming are gaining popularity. But traditional family farms have largely been replaced by big, highly productive factory farms.

Fifty years ago, fourteen hours of labor¹⁰ on one hectare of land produced about one hundred bushels of corn, or maize¹¹. Now it can be done with less than half a hectare. These numbers come from the United States Department of Agriculture.

But Leo Fitzpatrick points out that farmers still work very hard. It is not unusual for a farmer to work day and night at planting and harvest times. 

LEO FITZPATRICK: "With all the gadgets¹² and things that's great for industry and everything, we're still people who live off the land. We're part of the land. You can eat an old cow, but you can't eat an old computer."

VOICE TWO:

Leo and his friend Judy Grant belong to several historical societies. Together they research family history, and Leo has written a book about his ancestors.

His grandparents on his mother's side were named Abraham Lincoln Brubaker and Emma Cecilia Shondell. They arrived in Michigan with almost enough children to start a school. The family came from the neighboring state of Ohio. Fourteen of their sixteen children were born there.

VOICE ONE:

Leo Fitzpatrick makes it clear that he wants to help save the memories of America's rural past. He wants people to know the story of the land and its people.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Our program was written by Jerilyn Watson and produced by Caty Weaver¹³. You can see pictures of the Fitzpatricks and their farm at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Faith Lapidus.

VOICE ONE:

And I'm Steve Ember. From time to time we plan to introduce you to other American families, so keep listening. We hope you can join us again next week for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English.

1 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。

2 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

3 machinery   

n.(总称)机械，机器；机构

参考例句：

• Has the machinery been put up ready for the broadcast?广播器材安装完毕了吗？
• Machinery ought to be well maintained all the time.机器应该随时注意维护。

4 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

5 preservation   

n.保护，维护，保存，保留，保持

参考例句：

• The police are responsible for the preservation of law and order.警察负责维持法律与秩序。
• The picture is in an excellent state of preservation.这幅画保存得极为完好。

6 kernels   

谷粒( kernel的名词复数 )； 仁； 核； 要点

参考例句：

• These stones contain kernels. 这些核中有仁。
• Resolving kernels and standard errors can also be computed for each block. 还可以计算每个块体的分辨核和标准误差。

7 cedar   

n.雪松，香柏(木)

参考例句：

• The cedar was about five feet high and very shapely.那棵雪松约有五尺高,风姿优美。
• She struck the snow from the branches of an old cedar with gray lichen.她把长有灰色地衣的老雪松树枝上的雪打了下来。

8 welder   

n电焊工

参考例句：

• He left school at 15 to become an apprentice to a welder.他15岁离开了中学成为一个焊接工人的学徒。
• Welder done at least once a month when the dust handling.焊机时每月至少做一次除尘处理。

9 full-time   

adj.满工作日的或工作周的，全时间的

参考例句：

• A full-time job may be too much for her.全天工作她恐怕吃不消。
• I don't know how she copes with looking after her family and doing a full-time job.既要照顾家庭又要全天工作，我不知道她是如何对付的。

10 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

11 maize   

n.玉米

参考例句：

• There's a field planted with maize behind the house.房子后面有一块玉米地。
• We can grow sorghum or maize on this plot.这块地可以种高粱或玉米。

12 gadgets   

n.小机械，小器具（ gadget的名词复数 ）

参考例句：

• Certainly. The idea is not to have a house full of gadgets. 当然。设想是房屋不再充满小配件。 来自超越目标英语 第4册
• This meant more gadgets and more experiments. 这意味着要设计出更多的装置，做更多的实验。 来自英汉非文学 - 科学史

13 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。