VOA标准英语2011--Americans Hold Somber Observances of Sep

Americans Hold Somber Observances of September 11 Attacks

A decade after Islamic terrorists hijacked¹ four passenger planes and turned them into weapons to claim nearly 3,000 lives, people in the United States on Sunday somberly marked the September 11 anniversary with memorials at the scenes of the attacks.
The names of the nearly 3,000 victims at the World Trade Center speak volumes. The terrorist attacks in New York 10 years ago touched people of all backgrounds, races and ages.
"And my father, Sebastian Gorki, who I never met because I was in my mom's belly². I love you, father. I love you for loving the idea of having me. You gave me the gift of life, and I wish you could be here to enjoy it with me," said Nicholas Gorki.
Bells tolled³ to mark the moments when hijacked planes struck the twin towers, and when those towers collapsed⁴.
Among the crowd at the National September 11 Memorial, President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle; former President George W. Bush and his wife Laura, and New York City's mayor in 2001, Rudolph Giuliani. "God bless every soul that we lost. God bless the family members who have to endure that loss, and God guide us to our reunion in heaven, and God bless the United States of America," he said.
The decade has not dulled the sense of loss.
"Miss my son every day of his, of my life. Ten years seem like 10 minutes right now," said one woman.
Elsewhere, mourners gathered in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where a hijacked plane crashed after passengers overpowered their attackers.
The Obamas appeared there, too, and shared a reflective moment.
And just outside the nation's capital, a remembrance at the Pentagon, where 184 people died when another plane struck the building.
Vice⁵ President Joe Biden spoke⁶ of the resilience of the victims' families. "You let them know that hope can grow from tragedy, that there can be a second life," he said.
Year after year, people come back to the scenes of the three attacks, united in their collective loss.

1 hijacked   

劫持( hijack的过去式和过去分词 )； 绑架； 拦路抢劫； 操纵（会议等，以推销自己的意图）

参考例句：

• The plane was hijacked by two armed men on a flight from London to Rome. 飞机在从伦敦飞往罗马途中遭到两名持械男子劫持。
• The plane was hijacked soon after it took off. 那架飞机起飞后不久被劫持了。

2 belly   

n.肚子，腹部；(像肚子一样)鼓起的部分，膛

参考例句：

• The boss has a large belly.老板大腹便便。
• His eyes are bigger than his belly.他眼馋肚饱。

3 tolled   

鸣钟（toll的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• Bells were tolled all over the country at the King's death. 全国为国王之死而鸣钟。
• The church bell tolled the hour. 教堂的钟声报时。

4 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

5 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

6 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。