英语听力—环球英语 868 Groups for Mothers

　　Voice 1
Hello. Welcome to Spotlight¹. I’m Bruce Gulland.
Voice 2
And I’m Marina Santee. This programme uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
The sun sets over the mountains in Western Nepal. Women are returning home. They have worked all day in the fields. Their trip home is not easy. The paths are narrow and uneven². And the women carry heavy loads of grass on their heads. They will feed their animals with this grass. As the women get nearer to their homes, they can hear noises. It is coming from one of the village houses.
A group of older women are gathering³ outside the house. Inside, a husband and wife are arguing. The husband is angry. He is beating his wife. The older women outside the house have formed a circle. They are shouting, loudly. They do not enter the house, but the husband and wife hear them. The husband stops. He knows this group of women. And he is a little afraid of them. He knows that people in the community greatly respect these women. The wife is thankful that he has stopped beating her. She goes to the window and smiles. She knows these women too - they are local village women. They are part of the Mothers’ Union.
Voice 2
In the villages of Western Nepal, everyone knows about Mothers’ Unions. These groups of women are all mothers from the villages. And they all work to make good changes in their communities. In today’s Spotlight we look at the work of Mothers’ Union groups in two very different countries – Nepal and England.
Voice 1
For many people in the country areas of Nepal, life is not easy. Most people work as farmers. People in poorer communities do not own their own land. Instead, they work on the land of richer families to earn money or food. They do not have machines to make farming easy. And there is very little water. Travelling to the local market or health service is a long and difficult trip for most people. There is a lack of good jobs. This struggle to survive sometimes causes conflict in the homes.
It is in these difficult situations that Mothers’ Unions work. And violence in the home is just one of the issues they deal with. One Mothers’ Union member explained:
Voice 3
‘The Mothers’ Union do many things. You see these small foot paths? We helped to build them. We collected money from the village people in our community. Then, we went to our local government man. We told him, “You have to help us. We can give you some money. You can provide the work.” And now we have these good footpaths⁶.'
Voice 2
Some villages do not have a footpath⁵. For people in these villages, travelling to the local market or school is difficult, and even dangerous. Having a good footpath makes life much easier for families. They can make more money at the market. They can get to health care centers more quickly. And children can get to school.
Voice 1
Another way Mothers’ Unions work is to gather money for community needs. For example, some groups have helped pay for community centres, or farm animals. They also work to deal with alcohol⁷ problems. One group set an alcohol limit for all the men in the village! The women in the Mothers’ Unions know that they cannot solve all of their village’s problems. But they also know that by working together, they can make life better for their people.
Voice 2
In England, the Mothers’ Union group began from one mother’s desire to improve the environment for her children. Mary Sumner was born in the 1800s in Northern England. Her family was wealthy. So she had a good education and later married a priest⁸. However, when Mary had her first child, she was afraid. She was frightened about the huge responsibility of being a mother. She was also concerned about the environment her children would live in. She worried about the lack of morals⁹ and values in society. Mary cared for her children as best she could. Years later they married and had their own children. And it was then that Mary decided¹⁰ to act. She wanted to start a women’s group in her church to support mothers. During a women’s meeting Mary said:
Voice 4
‘The power for change lies in the hands of mothers. If women unite in prayer and faith, they can change a nation.’
Voice 1
It was from these words that the first Mothers’ Union formed. The groups spread through churches in the England. They were based on the values that Mary spoke¹¹ about - unity⁴, prayer and faith. Today, the group is an international aid group. It works¹² in 81 countries around the world. In many of these countries, the Mother’s Union works to improve education among women – helping¹³ them to bring change in their own communities.
Voice 2
In England, the Mothers’ Union works in local communities to serve the needs of mothers and their families. They work in many places – schools, hospitals, churches, even the visitor centres in prisons. These groups have classes and information for parents. In other areas, groups of mothers simply meet to drink tea and talk together - sharing the joys and the difficulties of being a mother.
Voice 1
Members are also concerned about morals and values in society. They encourage people to lead good lives based on Christian¹⁴ values of respect, love, and faith. This includes writing to governments to fight corruption¹⁵ and crime. They concentrate on issues that particularly affect women and children.
Voice 2
Mothers’ Unions are different in different parts of the world. They speak different languages, are of different religions and ethnic¹⁶ groups. But like Mary, they share an important hope. They all want to improve the world that their children are growing up in. And together, women around the world are showing that the power for change really can lie in the hands of mothers.
 

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 uneven   

adj.不平坦的，不规则的，不均匀的

参考例句：

• The sidewalk is very uneven—be careful where you walk.这人行道凹凸不平—走路时请小心。
• The country was noted for its uneven distribution of land resources.这个国家以土地资源分布不均匀出名。

3 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。

4 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

5 footpath   

n.小路，人行道

参考例句：

• Owners who allow their dogs to foul the footpath will be fined.主人若放任狗弄脏人行道将受处罚。
• They rambled on the footpath in the woods.他俩漫步在林间蹊径上。

6 footpaths   

人行小径，人行道( footpath的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There are a lot of winding footpaths in the col. 山坳里尽是些曲曲弯弯的羊肠小道。
• There are many footpaths that wind through the village. 有许多小径穿过村子。

7 alcohol   

n.酒精，乙醇；含酒精的饮料

参考例句：

• The law forbids shops to sell alcohol to minors.法律禁止商店向未成年者出售含酒精的饮料。
• The alcohol is industrial.这些酒精是供工业用的。

8 priest   

n.神父，牧师，司铎，司祭，领导者，神甫；vt.使成为神职人员

参考例句：

• He confessed to a priest that he had sinned.他向神父忏悔他犯了罪。
• The priest visited all the old people in the parish.牧师探望了教区里的所有老人。

9 morals   

n. 道德; 名词moral的复数形式

参考例句：

• a self-appointed custodian of public morals 自封的公共道德的卫道士
• We must arm the people against the lowering of our morals. 我们必须武装人们的头脑，以防我们的道德标准降低。

10 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。

11 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。

12 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

13 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。

14 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

15 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

16 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。