VOA慢速英语--印度一对父子在疫情封锁期间种田养活邻居

The garden that Sijo Zachariah and his father planted was a way to make sure their family had food to eat during the coronavirus pandemic.

But the garden became much more. It became a way to help their community. It also led Zachariah to change the direction of his life.

The 22-year-old aircraft engineer had been living in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. But he was in the southwestern Indian state of Kerala for a family wedding when the government shut down the area as the coronavirus spread.

"What's going to happen?" he thought. "You know, how are we going to feed ourselves?"

Food stores in the area were nearly empty. Places that sold plants for gardening were closed. So, Zachariah and his father collected seeds from whatever fruits and vegetables they could find and planted them on their family's land. They already had some plants growing, but they added many more.

The father and son watched YouTube videos to learn about gardening. They also remembered information that Zachariah's grandfather had passed down to his father.

Over time, the garden would help feed 20 other families during the pandemic.

"We started teaching¹ others how to grow their own crops so that everyone can have some sort of crop growing in the land," he said.

Kerala's climate is tropical². That means it has a lot of rain and sun, making farming easier.

Zachariah became interested in permaculture -- a movement that says farming should work with nature instead of trying to control the land.

In the past, Zachariah had studied and worked in Wales in Britain. He wondered why the food he ate in Wales was better than the food he ate at home.

Zachariah came to understand that the food was fresher. It came from local farms and was not treated with chemicals before traveling by truck or plane to be sold far away.

Zachariah is now considering a new profession: farming. He connected with other people online who are thinking of a future in farming as well.

He said, "There's many people like me who are genuinely⁴ curious or genuinely want to do something, but they are stuck somewhere, with their work or in a city life."

Zachariah has left the farm in the hands of his neighbors since returning to Dubai. He has decided⁵ to become a farmer.

"It's a big change for me. But this is what makes me happy — helping⁶ others and being in nature," he said.

There is one more reason he was happy with his farming life.

"I was getting quality time with my dad as well, so it was like a win-win," he said.

Words in This Story

garden – n. an area of ground where plants (such as flowers or vegetables) are grown

pandemic – n. an occurrence⁷ in which a disease⁸ spreads very quickly and affects a large number of people over a wide area or throughout the world

tropical – adj. the part of the world that is near the equator⁹ where the weather is very warm

permaculture - n. a study of plant life, ecology and sustainability

genuine³ – adj. sincere, truthful

1 teaching   

n.教学，执教，任教，讲授；(复数)教诲

参考例句：

• We all agree in adopting the new teaching method. 我们一致同意采取新的教学方法。
• He created a new system of teaching foreign languages.他创造了一种新的外语教学体系。

2 tropical   

adj.热带的，热带的，炎热的

参考例句：

• You must grow these tropical flowers in a glasshouse.你必须把这些热带花卉种在温室里。
• This disease is widespread in tropical areas.这种疾病在热带地区蔓延很广。

3 genuine   

adj.真的，非人造的；真诚的，真心的

参考例句：

• On further examination it was found that the signature was not genuine.经过进一步的调查发现签名不是真的。
• As time went on,a genuine friendship grew up between us.随着时间的推移，我们之间产生了一种真挚的友情。

4 genuinely   

ad.真地；确实地

参考例句：

• She appeared genuinely surprised by this gesture of affection. 看来她真的被这个爱意的表示惊呆了。
• She seems genuinely fond of the children. 她似乎真的喜欢这些小孩。

5 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。

6 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

7 occurrence   

n.发生，出现，事件，发生的事件

参考例句：

• Two things account for its occurrence.发生这件事的原因有两个。
• For a military commander，winning or losing a battle is a common occurrence.胜败乃兵家常事。

8 disease   

n.疾病，弊端

参考例句：

• The doctors are trying to stamp out the disease.医生正在尽力消灭这种疾病。
• He fought against the disease for a long time.他同疾病做了长时间的斗争。

9 equator   

n.赤道，（平分球形物体的面的）圆

参考例句：

• Singapore is near the equator.新加坡位于赤道附近。
• The United States is north of the equator.美国位于赤道以北。