英语听力—环球英语 481：Building Schools in Pakistan, 1

　　Voice 1
Welcome to Spotlight¹. I’m Adam Navis.
Voice 2
And I’m Liz Waid. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
Greg Mortenson could not feel his feet. He had been walking for hours over snow and ice. At any second he could step into a hidden hole and fall hundreds of metres onto the rocks below.
Voice 2
He was climbing down the mountain K2, in Pakistan. This is one of the highest mountains in the world. Mortenson was tired and sad. He had not made it to the top. Worse still, he had lost his path down the mountain, and the other climbers.
Voice 1
After a cold night alone on the mountain, Mortenson found the path again. But, he was so busy looking at the birds, trees and mountains that he lost his way. Instead, he walked into the village of Korphe.
Voice 2
In Pakistani culture it is important to welcome people into your home. This is true even when you do not know the people, or what they want. Mortenson was invited into the home of the chief of the village. Mortenson was sick and weak. The village was poor, but the people of Korphe fed him and helped him back to health.
Voice 1
During his stay, he asked the chief, Haji Ali, to see the school. Haji Ali brought Mortenson up a path and he saw eighty children on the cold ground. They were doing their work in the dirt. The village had no school.
Voice 2
Mortenson put his hands on Haji Ali’s shoulders and said, “I am going to build you a school. I promise.” This promise would take Mortenson’s life on a new path.
Voice 1
There was only one problem. Mortenson had no money. He had only enough to fly home to the United⁴ States. He did not have a home. He lived in his car. Mortenson was trained as a medical nurse, so he worked in a hospital during the nights and weekends. He used most of his time to write letters to famous people asking for money for the school.
Voice 2
One of the doctors where Mortenson worked was also a mountain climber. This doctor talked to Mortenson about the attempt to climb K2. He encouraged Mortenson to write about it for a climbing newsletter. Mortenson did write the story, but soon forgot about it. He was too busy trying to get money for the school.
Voice 1
Then, one day, Mortenson heard from Dr². Jean Horeni. He had read the story. He wanted to know about the school project. Dr. Jean Horeni was a very rich man. And he gave money to many projects. First, Horeni made sure that Mortenson was not going to spend the money on himself. Then, he wanted to know how much the school would cost. Horeni was amazed⁵ that the school could be built for only twelve thousand dollars. He was used to people asking him for much more. He gave Mortenson the money for the whole amount.
Voice 2
In a single day, Mortenson had the money for the school. He did not want to use any of the money to pay for his travel. So, he sold everything he owned: his books, his climbing equipment, even the car he had been sleeping in. With the money he could pay for an airplane journey to Pakistan.
Voice 1
But things were not easy to organize in Pakistan. The mountains of Northern Pakistan made travel difficult, especially carrying the wood, nails⁶, and tools for the school. The roads were rough³ and often blocked by rocks. Heavy snow made building during the winter impossible.
Voice 2
Also, Mortenson did not know who he could trust. He did not know which suppliers would give him a fair price. Some people only helped him so that he would move the school to their village.
Voice 1
Finally he returned to Korphe. He sat with the village leaders and drank tea. They told him, “First, we need a bridge. Then we will build the school.”
Voice 2
Mortenson tried his best not to get sad. He tried to respect the community. He knew they were only doing what was best for their village. Mortenson returned home to the United States. He did not feel very good. Nothing was going as he hoped it would.
Voice 1
But when Dr. Horeni heard about the situation, he gave Mortenson money to build the bridge. And then he told Mortenson to get the school finished, and quickly. Dr. Horeni was very sick. Before he died he wanted to know the school was finished.
Voice 2
So Mortenson returned once again to Pakistan. He worked with the village to build the bridge. Then he started work on the school. But to him, it seemed that people were too slow. He thought they were wasting time. So he pushed the people to build hard and fast.
Voice 1
One day, the village chief came to him and asked him to walk together. The chief said,
Voice 3
“These mountains have been here a long time. And so have we. You cannot tell the mountains what to do. You must listen to them. So now I am asking you to listen to me. By the mercy⁷ of Almighty⁸ Allah, you have done much for my people, and we are thankful for it. But now you must do one more thing for me. You must sit down and close your mouth. You are making everyone insane⁹.”
Voice 2
Three weeks later, the walls of the school had risen above Mortenson’s head. All that remained was to put on the top. But rocks on the road blocked the truck with the last materials. So the men of Korphe carried the supplies on their backs. It was their school, and nothing was going to stop them from finishing it.
Voice 1
Today, the school is still serving the children of Korphe. And Greg Mortenson continues to work in Pakistan. He has also begun working in Afghanistan. However, in recent years, both of these countries have suffered the pains of war. This has made it more difficult for Mortenson to build more schools. In an upcoming Spotlight, we will examine how Mortenson’s organization, The Central Asia Institute, has worked in these new conditions. But one thing that has not changed is Mortenson’s belief that the only way to change the situation, the only way to bring peace, is through the education of children.
 

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 Dr   

n.医生，大夫；博士(缩)（= Doctor）

参考例句：

• Dr.Williams instructs us in botany.威廉博士教我们植物学。
• The ward of the hospital is in the charge of Dr.Green.医院的这间病房由格林医生负责。

3 rough   

adj.粗糙的；粗略的，大致的；粗野的，粗暴的

参考例句：

• It's just a very rough translation.这只是一篇非常粗糙的译稿。
• His reply was a bit rough.他的答复过于粗鲁了一点。

4 united   

adj.和谐的；团结的；联合的，统一的

参考例句：

• The whole nation is closely united.全国人民紧密团结。
• The two men were united by community of interests.共同的利益使两个人结合在一起。

5 amazed   

adj.吃惊的，惊奇的v.使大为吃惊，使惊奇( amaze的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Just the size of the place amazed her. 仅仅地方之大就使她十分惊奇。
• I was amazed at her knowledge of French literature. 她的法国文学知识之丰富使我大为惊奇。

6 nails   

n.钉子( nail的名词复数 )；钉状物；指甲；趾甲v.钉住( nail的第三人称单数 )；抓住；证明…不属实；揭露

参考例句：

• Stop biting your nails! 别咬指甲！
• He joined up the two pieces of wood together with nails. 他用钉子把两块木头接起来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 mercy   

n.仁慈，宽恕，怜悯

参考例句：

• Mercy to the enemies means cruelty to the people.对敌人的仁慈就意味着对人民的残忍。
• It is a mercy that you did not go.你幸好没有去。

8 almighty   

adj.全能的，万能的；很大的，很强的

参考例句：

• Those rebels did not really challenge Gods almighty power.这些叛徒没有对上帝的全能力量表示怀疑。
• It's almighty cold outside.外面冷得要命。

9 insane   

adj.蠢极的，荒唐的，精神错乱的，疯狂的

参考例句：

• Insane people are sometimes dangerous.精神病人有时非常危险。
• The letter made her insane with jealousy.那封信使她妒忌得发疯。