-
2005
年
版
星
火
英
语
三
十篇
阅
读
贯
穿
考
研
词
汇
u
nit
1
：
The P
ermit
I
t
hink
t
he
bu
ilding
mu
st
have
been
u
sed
as
a
f
arm
er'
s
wint
er
stor
e;
I
f
ou
nd
piles
of
f
or
gott
en
dr
ied
chest
nut
s
and
gr
ain
in
rott
ing
bar
r
els.
I t
r
ied
the
chest
nut
s but t
hey t
ast
ed
sour
and
shar
p,
and
som
e
of
them
ha
d
sm
all
t
eeth
-m
arks
in
their
dark,
peeling
skins.
P
au
lo
said he
wou
ld bring m
e f
ood,
but
that
was thr
ee days ago.
Y
est
erday,
I heard a car
engine gett
ing closer,
and clim
bed
up t
o hide in t
he r
aft
ers of
the
pat
ched
roof,
bu
t t
he Gu
ar
dia
Civil m
en j
u
st loo
ked in qu
ickly t
hr
ou
gh the sm
ashed windows
and broken doors bef
or
e they left.
I clung t
o the dust
y wooden
raft
er,
f
eeling it
cr
eak and bend under
my weight,
and tr
ied t
o
make
no
noise.
M
y
arm
s
and
legs
gr
ew
numb,
then
began
t
o
tr
emble,
and
I
longed t
o m
ove,
but
I
wait
ed
unt
il
I hear
d the
policem
en dr
ive off.
I know that
P
au
lo wou
ld not have told them
about
m
e.
And I know that
they will r
etur
n. When we began the f
inal
part
of
our
jour
ney,
we wer
e war
ned t
hat
t
he police patr
ol the
land around her
e r
egu
lar
ly.
They ar
e always sear
ching for u
s,
or
other
s
like
u
s;
t
he
coast
of
Mor
occo
and
the
P
r
esidio
of
Ceut
a ar
e only t
en m
iles away acr
oss the Str
ait
s.
That
is ho
w I got
her
e: squ
eezed in wit
h f
ift
een ot
her
m
en
in a shallow boat m
eant f
or eight, with the cold
waves r
eaching
over
the sides and the night
deep and black as a t
omb.
I have
never
been
m
or
e
scar
ed.
I
pr
ayed
all
t
he
way
across,
and
thought
about
my f
am
ily.
I
told myself,
over
and over,
that
I
was doing it
for
them.
That
tr
ip t
ook almost
all of
m
y money.
All of t
he m
oney I had saved back hom
e in E
cu
ador,
all of
the
money I had wor
ked for
on t
he way.
The boatm
en left us on a
beach in t
he m
iddle of t
he night.
We lost sight
of t
hem
but we
cou
ld st
ill hear t
heir sm
all engine acr
oss t
he
waves.
S
ix of u
s
st
art
ed
walking
inland but
the
other
s
wait
ed f
or
the
cont
act,
the f
r
iends of
t
he boatm
en,
as t
hey had been told,
and m
et
the
Gu
ar
dia C
ivil inst
ead.
We
wer
e
lu
cky:
we
m
et
P
au
lo.
We
f
ound
the
t
own
and
wait
ed
u
nt
il
the
f
irst
bar
opened;
I
went
in
alone
while
the
other
s hid in the or
char
d near
by. When I asked f
or cof
f
ee, the
young
barm
an
looked
at m
e
and
nodded.
He
m
ade t
he
coff
ee,
then disappear
ed int
o t
he back r
oom. C
old and wit
hout
st
r
engt
h,
I
wr
apped my hands ar
ou
nd t
he war
m cup,
not
car
ing whet
her
the
barm
an
h
ad
called
the
police,
not
car
ing
about
the
next
mom
ent, j
ust
about t
he pr
esent.
But
the
m
an
had
called
P
au
lo,
who
cam
e
and
helped
u
s.
Pau
lo
is
always
smiling,
always
happy.
He
is
fr
om
S
eville,
a
bu
sy
city
of
m
any
people,
and
he
kno
ws
m
any
people.
P
au
lo
fou
nd
work
for u
s.
I m
ade
good money
on the f
arm
s.
I picked
cabbages,
and
cau
lif
lower
s,
and
art
ichokes
and
broccoli.
I
picked
gr
eat
r
ou
nd
yellow
squ
ashes
that
sm
elled
of
rich
per
fum
e when you
broke t
hem.
The f
arm
er
s hir
ed us by the day,
and wer
e cont
ent. The local people will not wor
k f
or the wages
we ar
e paid.
But
t
her
e wer
e m
any f
arms,
and m
any crops t
o be
picked.
We
wer
e
welcom
ed.
I shar
ed a sm
all clean house in t
he t
own wit
h seven ot
her
wor
kers.
We
had
jour
neyed
fr
om
E
cu
ador,
Colombia,
V
enezu
ela,
even A
r
gent
ina.
Pau
lo f
ou
nd the hou
se f
or u
s
- he
knew
the
landlor
d
and
arr
anged
a
good
pr
ice.
We
lived
well,
wit
h enou
gh food and som
et
im
es wine. I earned m
or
e in a week
than I cou
ld in t
hr
ee m
onths back hom
e, if ther
e had been wor
k
to do t
her
e.
I sent
most
of t
he money that
was left
to m
y wif
e
and
par
ents,
and
wr
ot
e
m
any
lett
ers
t
o
them.
Then
the
governm
ent
changed
the
r
u
les,
so
that
we
needed
wor
k
perm
it
s.
I
qu
eu
ed
wit
h
hundr
eds
of
ot
her
wor
kers
ou
tside
the
Ayu
nt
am
iento,
wait
ing f
or
t
he applicat
ion forms.
We s
at
on the
stone
benches
beneath
t
he
t
r
ees
in
the
P
la?
a
and
r
ead
the
form
s. Som
e of
t
he other
wor
kers ar
e fr
om
sm
all villages and
towns,
and cannot
r
ead as well as I can,
so I explained to t
hem
that
t
he
governm
ent
want
ed
ou
r
birt
h
cer
tif
icat
es,
dr
iving
licences,
passports
and
m
any
other
docum
ents.
M
any
of
the
wor
kers had per
haps one or
t
wo of
these docum
ent
s,
but
most
had none.
I helped t
he ot
hers com
plet
e t
he f
orm
s and we gave
them
t
o
t
he
cler
k
in
the
A
yunt
amiento.
He
looked
at
our
docum
ents,
st
amped t
he f
orm
s m
any t
im
es and told u
s that
t
hey
wou
ld be sent
to M
adr
id,
and ou
r
perm
it
s wou
ld be r
et
ur
ned in
t
wo or t
hr
ee m
ont
hs.
If the forms wer
e approved.
We had t
o
wait. E
ven P
au
lo and his fr
iends cou
ld not help
us.
The f
irst
m
ont
h
was
not t
oo bad,
as m
ost
of
the
f
arm
er
s
cont
inu
ed t
o u
se us; their
cr
ops wer
e r
ich and heavy,
wait
ing
to
be
picked.
Then
som
e
m
en
fr
om
M
adr
id
visit
ed
all
of
the
farms,
and
m
aybe
half
of
the
f
arm
er
s
st
opped
u
sing
us.
The
farm
er
s told u
s t
hat
they
wer
e sor
r
y, and we believed t
hem.
So the second m
onth was wor
se: f
ew of
t
he f
arm
er
s wou
ld
use
u
s,
and
those
t
hat
did
paid
ver
y
poor
wages.
We
shar
ed
what
we had,
and at
e once a day: r
ice,
past
a,
br
ead,
cheap f
ood
that wou
ld f
ill our
st
om
achs.
We began to st
ar
e at each other,
and
wonder
which
of u
s wou
ld find wor
k. Ther
e
wer
e f
ights in
the
m
or
ning,
bet
ween
diff
er
ent
groups
of
wor
ker
s,
when
the
farms'
f
or
em
en
cam
e
to the P
la?
a
to
choose
who
wou
ld
wor
k
that day. Bu
t st
ill we had som
e hope.
We lost t
he hou
se in t
he third month, as
we had no m
oney
for
r
ent.
We
wer
e
able
to
get
som
e
f
ood
f
rom
the
char
it
y
kit
chens around t
he to
wn,
and t
he chur
ch,
but we found al
ways
a
long
qu
eu
e
and
ver
y
lit
t
le
f
ood.
We
t
ook
our
bags
and
blanket
s and slept in t
he f
ields.
Then t
he weather
becam
e cold
and
we
slept
wher
e
we
cou
ld,
hu
ddled
together,
in
old
for
gott
en
bu
ildings
and
alleys.
S
om
et
im
es
I
dr
eam
ed
of
m
y
fam
ily
and
m
y
hom
e,
and
when
I
awoke
I
wished
t
he
dr
eam
cou
ld continu
e.
The people of the t
own st
ar
ed at us fr
om t
he sides of t
heir
eyes
as
they
passed
u
s.
They
clenched
t
heir
hands
and
mutt
er
ed,
and som
e of
them
spat
on the pavem
ent.
A
f
ew of
u
s
wer
e
att
acked
and
beat
en
in
t
he
dark,
and
dr
iven
f
rom
the
parks and str
eet
s.
A
ll of
the t
im
e,
t
he P
olice t
old us t
o m
ove on,
move on.
It is the end of t
he t
hir
d m
ont
h
when it
happens.
The
f
arm
ers
hir
e
coaches
and
send
t
hem
into
t
he
P
la?
a
Colom.
Fr
om
four
o'
clock
in t
he morning
we
wait
in
shuff
ling
silence,
hands pu
shed deep int
o pocket
s,
our
hat
s pu
lled do
wn
tight
against
the cold and t
he wat
ching policem
en.
By
t
he
tim
e
the
coaches
arr
ive
t
her
e
ar
e
hundr
eds
of
wor
kers
wait
ing
in
the
dar
kness.
We
pr
ess
f
or
war
d
as
the
door
s
open.
The
f
or
em
en
st
and
on
the
bottom
st
eps
of
the
coaches and ask,
it?
The m
en
wit
h
perm
it
s
hold t
hem
u
p
and
ar
e
allowed ont
o
the coaches.
Som
e of
t
he worker
s ar
e fr
om the count
r
ies in E
ur
ope and
do
no
need
perm
it
s,
so t
hey
ar
e
allowed
on
when
they
show
their
passports.
I go fr
om coach t
o coach u
nt
il I see a gr
oup of
Chileans,
who I kno
w have no perm
its,
climb aboard a wait
ing
coach.
The leader
of
their
gr
ou
p speaks f
irst
with t
he f
or
em
an
and shakes his hand,
then they ar
e t
aken on. I st
and befor
e the
for
em
an.
ou
have t
he perm
it?
e.
He is br
oad and st
out,
and f
ills t
he door
way of
t
he coach.
His f
at
neck spills f
rom
the
uptu
rned collar
of
his leather
j
acket.
His hair
is shaven close
to his head.
I explain to him
that
my applicat
ion
was r
ej
ect
ed
but
I have t
r
ied again.
e
back
when
you
have
a
perm
it,
he
t
ells
m
e.
He
frowns as he pu
lls on his cigar
ett
e and looks do
wn t
h
e avenu
e
to wher
e t
he policem
en ar
e wat
ching the coaches. I explain t
o
him
that t
hat I am a hard wor
ker,
that I have eat
en only once in
thr
ee days,
t
hat
I am
desper
at
e t
o work and send m
oney to m
y
fam
ily.
He looks at
the policem
en, who have st
art
ed walkin
g along
the pavem
ent
beside the coaches,
and he scowls at
m
e and says,
o to M
adrid and t
ell them.
The Chileans ar
e lau
ghing and pointing at
m
e thr
ough the
coach windows.
The
f
or
em
an
f
licks
his
half
-f
inished
cigar
ett
e
int
o
the
gutt
er
by m
y f
oot
and I pu
nch him in the stom
ach.
He f
olds over
wit
h a sm
all cr
y.
The policem
en look at u
s and I begin t
o r
un,
away f
rom the
Pla?
a,
away
fr
om t
he
coaches,
into t
he dark
side
str
eets
and
avenu
es.
I
hear
loud
ru
nning
st
eps
close
behind
m
e,
and
the
roar
of
car
engines.
The
shu
tt
er
ed bu
ildings r
ef
lect t
he
blu
e
light
s.
I
slide
my
body
into
the
shado
ws
of
a
shop'
s
back
door,
behind t
wo t
all m
et
al bins that
st
ink of
r
ott
ing m
eat
and ur
ine.
I
gasp,
and
each
br
eat
h
bur
ns.
My heart
hamm
er
s
against m
y
chest.
I
wait
f
or
a
lo
ng
t
im
e
unt
il
the
sou
nds
of
t
he
car
s
and
people f
ade.
I walk slo
wly t
o the end of
t
he alley and look out,
but
the st
r
eet
s ar
e em
pt
y.
I have run almost
to t
he r
iver
; I can hear it r
ushing in the
darkness beneath m
e.
My r
ight
hand f
eels cold.
I look do
wn,
in the yello
w light
of
a
str
eet
lam
p,
and
see
m
y
hand
st
ill
clenched
int
o
a
f
ist.
It
looks like the hand of
anot
her person, not
part
of
m
e.
A
short
blade,
no longer
t
han m
y t
humb,
st
icks out
f
rom
t
he f
ist.
The
blade, m
y f
ist, and m
y sleeve ar
e all st
ained dark r
ed.
Pau
lo
gave m
e
the
knif
e
wh
en
I picked
ar
t
ichokes
on
the
farms.
The
shor
t
t
hick
blade
is
ver
y
shar
p,
m
ade
f
or
slicing
thr
ou
gh t
he plants'
thick st
alks.
I scr
ambled do
wn t
o the banks of
the r
iver
and thr
ew the
knif
e
into
the
night.
I
hear
d
it
spl
ash
f
ar
away.
The
r
iver
tou
ched
m
y
f
eet.
I
r
eached
down
and
washed
m
y
sleeve
and
hand,
althou
gh t
he
wat
er
was
so
cold,
like
ice,
t
hat
m
y
hand
becam
e num
b. Then I walked back up t
o t
he str
eet.
I f
ou
nd
som
e
of
the
other
worker
s
hiding
in t
he deser
t
ed
war
ehouse we had found. O
ne of t
hem
went t
o f
ind P
au
lo,
who
cam
e and told m
e about
t
he old f
arm
bu
ildings near
to t
he coast
road. P
au
lo
was not
sm
iling.
I
wait
ed
unt
il
dar
kness bef
or
e
I
followed
the
r
oad
out
of
the
t
own,
t
hr
owing
m
yself
int
o
the
dit
ch if
I hear
d
a car approaching.
The
weather
has been
clear
and I
have
seen the
coast of
Morocco ever
y day. A
cr
oss t
he blu
e sea f
lecked with sun,
the
land is a st
r
ip of
dar
k br
own and gr
ey,
and looks close enough
for
m
e
t
o
t
ou
ch.
M
aybe
I
cou
ld
f
ind
an
old
tr
act
or
t
yr
e
t
ube
ar
ou
nd t
he f
arm
and f
loat
acr
oss t
he St
r
ait
s?
O
r m
aybe I cou
ld
walk along t
he shor
e and st
eal a boat?
I do
not
want t
o
becom
e
a thief.
I
am
an
honest
man
who
wants only t
o work and support his f
am
ily. But
what can I do?
I will wait
her
e f
or
P
au
lo a
nd list
en t
o him.
He will t
ell m
e
what
to do f
or
the best.
I know t
hat he will help m
e.
u
nit
2
：
Tim
eless photogr
aphs
I
love t
o
look
at
old photogr
aphs
in the
album
(
影
集
).My
fat
her
had a big box of
pict
ur
es in the cabinet
and som
e of
the
pictur
es go way back t
o t
he 1890'
s.
The
wom
en dr
essed wit
h
su
ch
dignit
y
and
had
st
yle
back
t
hen.
M
y
D
ad
wou
ld
linger
ar
ou
nd
his
pr
ecious
box
of
photogr
aphs
and
t
eel
m
e
stor
ies
about
each
phot
o
and
very
one.
It
was
one
of
t
hose
mom
ent
s
that you cou
ld not r
eally appr
eciat
e when y
ou
wer
e you
nd.
It is
only aft
er he was long gone t
hat I can look back and say thanks
for
t
aking the t
im
e to show m
e a t
iny window into t
he wor
ld of
people
who r
eally did kno
w how to live.
I f
ound a f
ew of m
y au
nts in t
heir f
ashionable outf
it
s by an
old
C
adillac
pr
et
ending
to
dr
ink
whisky.
M
any
of
the
photogr
aphs
wer
e
t
aken
in
CO
ney
Island
and
CapeC
od.
I
especially
love
the
photogr
aphs
of
the
bathing
beaut
ies
and
their
swimsu
its.
T
He
su
it
s
ar
e
qu
it
e
m
odest
by
t
oday'
s
st
andar
ds but
the young wom
en didn'
t
seem
t
o car
e.
They wer
e
st
aying at
su
ch places as Newport
B
each and C
ape Cod having
the
t
im
e
of
t
heir
lives
ru
nning
in
and
out
of
t
he
t
ide.
O
ne
photogr
aph
had
a
vendor
(
小
贩
）
selling
dogs(
热
狗
)by
a
coast
er
(
轮
船
）
at CO
ney Island
--a younger
pict
ur
e of
my mother
wit
h her
e br
own hair and blu
e eyes eager
to go on boar
d wit
h
my D
ad. He looked a bit fr
ight
ened in t
he pict
ur
e as I cou
ld see
he was lolding on t
ight
ly t
o the bar
t
o t
he coast
er,
his black hair
flying in the br
eeze. I sm
ile when I look at t
hat pictu
r
e because
it
is hard to im
agine anyone'
s D
ad ever
being a kid.
He looked
like he was having a gr
eat t
im
e pr
obably because he was wit
h
my mot
her.
S
He is sm
iling in the pict
ur
e and wear
ing a
whit
e
blouse(
女
衬
衫
）
,blu
e
short
s
and
t
ennis
shoes.
She
is
qu
it
e
a
looker
(
美
女
）
,
I can see
why m
y D
ad liked her
so mu
ch.
I
dig
down
t
o
t
he
bott
om
of
the
box
and
see
t
wo
large
photogr
aphs.
O
ne
is
dat
ed
1900
and
the
ot
her
one
is
dat
ed
1997--a r
ec
ent
pictu
r
e t
hat
looks sim
ilar
to t
he older
one.
The
older
pictu
r
e
looks
f
am
iliar
because
it
is
t
aken
in
the
sam
e
place--the summ
er
hom
e.
I will descr
ibe the older
photogr
aph as ver
y int
er
est
ing in
the
st
yle
of
dr
ess
and
exact
ly
wher
e
the
people
ar
e
sitt
ing.
They ar
e posed ou
tside t
he cott
age by a sm
all t
r
ee t
hat
is st
ill
ther
e today.
A
wom
an
is
sitt
ing
in
a r
ocking
chair,
with
her
e
black hair pu
lled u
p in a bu
n(
脑
后
的
女
髻
）
.
She is not
sm
iling but
looking away f
rom
t
he cam
er
a
and wear
ing a long black dr
ess.
Anot
her
wom
an is wear
ing a whit
e blouse wit
h a neckt
ie(
领
结
）
and
a
long black
skirt.
Her
hair
is
also
long
and
blonder
(
金
黄
色的
）
but
pu
lled back in a bun.
Ther
e ar
e t
wo m
en on eit
her side
of
a wooden t
able.
BO
th m
en appear
older
and ar
e dr
essed in
hats and su
it
s and t
ies,t
rouser
s and SUnday shoes.
Neit
her is
smiling.
(I
have t
he
dist
inct
f
eeling t
hat t
he
wom
en
ar
e
their
wives
and
it
is
S
unday.
)
t
hey
pr
obabl
y
ar
e
hungr
y
f
or
their
roast
beef
and
pot
atoes,but t
hat
is ju
st m
y
gu
ess.
Ther
e
is
a
young boy,
pr
obably about
13 in the phot
ogr
aph,
He is wear
ing
a
whit
e
blou
se,
black
short
s,
long
black
socks
and
t
an
sport
s
shoes.
He
is
pett
ing
a black dog that
is
sitt
ing o
n t
op
of
the
rou
nd
wooden
t
able.
The
boy
is
bending
down
and
he
isn'
t
smiling eit
her.
It
mu
st
have been hot
out
side and he pr
obably
wants to go f
or
a swim
with the dog.
The
wat
er
is ju
st
belo
w
them
and
he
is
pr
obably
wonder
ing
why
he
has
t
o
t
ake
this
stu
pid pict
ur
e all dr
essed u
p on a Su
nday.
I not
ice that
the color
of m
y cabin
was qu
it
e diff
er
ent
in
1900 and it
was mu
ch sm
aller.
The color
was gr
een,
wit
h whit
e
railings(
栏
杆
)around t
he
por
ch
and st
eps
leading down t
o the
pat
io(
院
子
).
That is wher
e the pictu
r
e of
this Sm
art Fam
ily was
taken. The f
amily appears r
ather
st
iff in the phot
o bu
t I am
sur
e
that t
hey had a good lau
gh aft
er the Sunday dinner
was ser
ved.
The second larger
phot
ogr
aph is of m
y own f
am
ily about
1997.
It
is also in black and
whit
e.
We didn'
t wear
andy older
clother
s but
u
sed our
own clot
hes.
The tr
ee in the backgr
ound
has gr
own t
o enormou
s height
s and is st
ill st
anding. The st
eps
leading down
to Mousam
Lake
have
cr
acked
and
ar
e
in
awf
u
l
need of
r
epair.
B
elieve
it
or
bot,
we
st
ill
own t
he
old
wooden
table and all of
t
he r
ocking chair
s owned by the Sm
art
Fam
ily.
I
did
a
sear
ch
of
t
he
Sm
art
Fam
ily
and
t
hey
wer
e
or
iginally
from
Ports m
out
h(
朴
茨
茅
斯
）
.
At least
f
ive ot
her
f
am
ilies owned
my
cott
age
befor
e
m
y
f
at
her
bou
ght
it
in
1950
f
or
t
hr
ee
thousand
dollars.
The
cott
age
com
es
with
t
hirt
een
acr
es
of
land t
hat I st
ill own along wit
h m
y seven brot
her
s
and sist
er
s.
It
was passed on t
o m
e when m
y m
other
died.
We have f
orm
ed
the Cam
p Fund t
o pay t
he t
axes and pr
eserve ou
r legacy. It is
a
beaut
if
u
l
cabin on
a pr
im
e
spot
on M
ou
sam
Lake.
I
was not
her
e
when t
his photo was t
aken and it hangs in the livingroom
of
t
he cabin.
M
any vist
or
s comm
ent
on it
and t
hink it
is qu
it
e
am
azing to have a house for so long.
The hit
or
y of
the house is
int
er
est
ing to view f
rom
photogr
aphs.
Ar
ou
nd t
he t
able ar
e m
y
br
other
e B
ob j
ust
wear
ing a casu
al shirt
and short
s(sm
illing),
Annie wear
ing a T-Shirt
and shorts.
M
ike wear
ing a whit
e shirt
and long nylon tr
ouser
s not sm
iling, M
ar
y,
whom
I cou
ldn'
t t
ell
what she was wear
ing,my M
om,her whit
e hair and her beaut
ifu
l
blu
e eyes and sm
ile,
was wear
ing a peach blou
se and slacks,m
y
Dad
wasn'
t alive f
or
this photo,
he died in 1986.
Last
ly in the
pictur
e
is m
y
br
ot
her J
ohn,
wear
ing
a
whit
e vest,tr
ou
ser
s
and
su
spenders.
He slicked(
使
光
滑
、
顺
滑
)back his black hair
f
or
the
photo to
appear
in t
he per
iod st
yle.
He
wasn'
t
sm
iling
either.
The only dif
f
er
ence is t
hat m
y cot
aage is paint
ed br
own with a
lar
ger
por
ch and som
e addit
ional bu
ildings.
My f
ather
loved t
o
bu
ild
things
and
he
was
const
ant
ly
im
pr
oving
the
cabin.
He
bu
ilt
a deck do
wnst
air
s,
and also a dock f
or
his m
any boat
s.
He
also designed a gliding swing and a picnic t
able.
All of
these photogr
aphs r
em
ind m
e that
people ar
e not
so
ver
y dif
f
er
ent. We all want to enjoy living and be
t
ogether
as a
fam
ily.
The t
im
e t
hat
f
am
ilies spend t
oget
her
is ver
y valauble.
The
childr
en
wil
always
r
em
eber
t
he
litt
le
things
that
their
par
ent
s
do
for
t
hem.
For
m
e
is
was
m
y
D
ad
t
hat
showed
m
e
shese pict
ur
es and t
ook the t
im
e to t
ell m
e t
he stor
ies beh
ind
each of t
hem.
I t
hank him dear
ly for t
hat.
u
nit
3
：
the story of
my rom
ance
Tanya got
ou
t of the
bed
while
the
sun
was st
ill
asleep.
She looked out
the window; even t
he st
ar
s wer
e lost in the dark.
ld I be able to wat
ch su
nr
ise t
oday?
r heart.
She knew t
he answer
but
was af
r
aid t
o t
ell herself.
M
ike,
her
hu
sband
was st
ill in bed and so wer
e her f
our
kids.
Even their
sleep
cou
ldn'
t
elu
de her
fr
om
doing them
service. S
he had t
o
or
chestr
at
e her
wor
k t
o t
he m
icr
oscopic det
ails.
Fr
om pr
essin
g
clothes to polishing shoes,
f
inding m
at
ching socks t
o ar
r
anging
school bags,
f
ixing up br
eakf
ast
t
o pr
epar
ing snack
-boxes,
she
was
unt
hankfu
lly
su
pposed t
o m
ake
it
all
happen
like
a m
agic
wand.
A
nd t
o her
own
com
pu
lsory
f
au
lt,
she
did
it
all;
like
a
magic
wand.
Lif
e
r
an
like
a
wh
eel.
The
cir
cle
st
ar
t
ed
ever
y
morning
and
ended
up
lat
e
in
the
night,
and
t
hen
mor
ning
appear
ed again. Ther
e was no pau
se, no r
est, not
even a slight
cu
rve
to
insert
change.
S
he
condemned
herself
f
or
not
exper
iencing even a t
hou
ght
of
ever gett
ing out of
this cir
cle.
She had committ
ed herself
to t
he or
bit of
lif
e.
Coming out of t
he bat
hr
oom, she tu
rned and looked at
her
bu
shed f
ace in t
he m
ir
ror
and gasped a t
ir
ed answer
t
o her
long
asked qu
est
ion,
you j
ust
keep dr
iving
in
t
he
su
nset.
She shook her
head to wing away those r
ebelliou
s but
t
er
f
lies in
her
m
ind.
She knew she cou
ldn'
t j
oin them
so she didn'
t want
them
to hang ar
ound her
eit
her.
She
ent
er
ed
t
he
kit
chen
hear
ing
M
ike,
yelling
in
his
dr
owsy voice for the absence of his to
wel in t
he bat
hr
oom. Her
youngest
daught
er K
ar
en st
art
ed cr
ying f
or
she didn'
t want t
o
go to school that day. Nicole, t
he eldest, cou
ldn'
t help herself
but
t
o
blam
e
D
aniel
f
or
t
he
overnight
f
r
agm
ent
at
ion
of
her
dollhouse.
While
R
andal
r
egist
er
ed
his
pr
ot
est
fr
om
his
bed
that he was not
going to dr
ink m
ilk in br
eakf
ast like ever
y day.
While in the kit
chen,
sugar had ru
n out and the laundr
y seem
ed
to have been br
eeding it
self. A
nd she was st
ill looking for t
hat
magic wand.
She never
got
t
o know when m
orning r
an int
o noon; even
the
clock
f
ailed
to
t
ell
her
that.
Mike
left
f
or
off
ice
st
ill
scr
eam
ing and shout
ing f
or
his t
owel and the school bu
s only
ar
r
ived aft
er
the kids had put
all t
heir st
unt
s on t
he dining t
able.
Their
absence
cou
ldn'
t
cease
her
wor
k
f
or
they
left
their
incarnat
ions
on
her
day.
She
was
com
par
ing
t
he
pile
of
her
cour
age t
o t
hat
of t
he
lau
ndry
when the
doorbell r
ang. It had
been
so
long
anybody
com
ing
to
their
hom
e
that
she
had
for
gott
en what
their doorbell sounded like. S
he tr
ied t
o gu
ess
who cou
ld it
be but not
a single nam
e int
ervened her t
hou
ght
s.
She opened the door
wit
h an uncert
ain hope f
or
a su
rpr
ise fr
om
the
blu
e
but
only
f
ou
nd
the
postm
an
st
anding
in
the
door
t
o
vanish that
uncert
ainty.
avid!
S
ince when did you
st
art
r
inging t
he doorbell?
wor
ds f
lew out
of her m
out
h with t
heir own consent.
ver
since I was a kid.
O
nly t
hat
in m
y childhood I wou
ld r
ing
the
bell
and
r
un
a
way.
D
avid
was
one
hell
of
a
cheer
fu
l
postm
an.
you don'
t need t
o ru
n away now.
not
u
nt
il you
hav
e signed and r
eceived you
lett
er.
er!
Who cou
ld send t
hat?
am not
su
r
e,
it
s
som
eone nam
ed L.
H.M. S
ounds
like
a
post
gr
adu
at
e degr
ee t
o m
e.
m
ind,
I'
ll sign it.
Tanya r
ec
eived the lett
er.
It
was a r
egist
er
ed lett
er
fr
om
wit
hin the t
own.
She
wonder
ed
who
cou
ld that
L.
H.M
be.
She
opened
t
he
envelope
and
t
he
myst
er
y
t
hat
enf
olded
it.
The
handwr
it
ing spar
ked a m
em
or
y but
she f
elt
t
oo over
whelm
ed t
o
scr
ape
her
past.
Her
heartbeat
st
art
ed
f
lying
on
butt
erf
ly
wings.
It
wasn'
t
ju
st
a
lett
er
wit
h
ordinar
y
wor
ds
wr
it
t
en on
a
piec
e of paper. She cou
ld f
eel those
words f
lutt
er
ing over
her
hear
t. They wer
e t
elling her
stor
ies of
her long lost
love.
My f
lower
ed wish Tanya!
I
once
sa
w
m
y
hom
e
in
the
str
eet
s
of
your
palm,
m
y
dest
iny
in the
sm
iles
of
your
prom
ises,
and m
y
shelt
er
in the
shado
ws of your eyes. I t
r
easu
r
ed all you
r whispers u
nder m
y
pillow,
you
r
fr
agr
ance in m
y br
eat
hs,
and your
nam
e in my ear
s.
You
r
f
ace st
ill light
ens u
p the sky in the night,
you
r
voice st
ill
rhym
es t
he r
ainf
all,
and you
r ha
ir
st
ill soft
en the
wind.
The su
n al
ways r
ose fr
om t
he casem
ent
of
you
r eyes.
And t
hen,
t
im
e f
lew you
away into som
eone else'
s wor
ld.
That
su
n vanished and ever since I haven'
t seen a sunrise.
Lif
e
is
spending
m
e
and
I
am
aging
int
o
it.
D
ays
keep
climbing
t
he
mount
ain
of
years.
Moon
dr
apes
it
s
f
ace
in
the
clou
ds
and the
night
r
ef
uses t
o bring
sleep
onto m
y
pillo
w.
I
fight
you
r
m
emor
ies
and
def
eat
myself.
The
pain
-
waves
of
your
absence
st
orm
t
hr
ou
gh m
y
st
ale
heart
and
leave
it
in
a
vort
ex.
Lif
e
r
uns
like
a
wheel.
The
cir
cle
st
arts
ever
y
morning
and
ends
up
lat
e
in
the
night,
and
then
m
orning
appear
s
again.
Ther
e is no pau
se,
no r
est,
not
even a slight cur
ve t
o tu
rn int
o
a change.
My f
ace has lived wit
h m
e for t
en cold wint
er
s, no
w I want t
o
f
eel the warmt
h of
you
f
ace.
Br
ing t
he sunshine of
your
eyes t
o
me.
M
eet
m
e while the sun set
s t
his Sunday at
t
he r
iver br
idge
wher
e days use t
o m
eet
nights.
M
y eyes will be m
easu
r
ing the
passage u
nt
il you
com
e.
Larr
y
The let
t
er
ended and left
her st
anding at t
he door of
he
r
tim
e-f
aded m
em
or
ies.
Larr
y was her
classm
at
e in college days.
He lived her
heart
and she dr
eam
ed his eyes.
They had planned
to get
m
arr
ied aft
er gr
adu
at
ion as soon as Larr
y found a good
job.
It
t
ook him
a year
t
o f
ind one and this expansion of
t
im
e let
Mike
su
rf
ace.
Mike
was
an
elegant
and
handsom
e
m
an
wit
h
alr
eady
a
good
j
ob.
He
pr
oposed
Tanya
and
she,
t
ir
ed
of
wait
ing for f
r
esh air, st
epped int
o t
he clouds wit
h M
ike. Larr
y
got
a f
ir
st
-r
at
e j
ob t
he day Tanya got
m
ar
r
ied.
In next
six months,
Larr
y left
th
e countr
y and Tanya m
oved t
o
Wisconsin.
Lif
e
got
bu
sy
in
its det
ails
and
Lar
ry
lived
in her
mem
or
y t
oo mu
ch that
she f
or
got
to r
em
ember
him.
Mike'
s love
scatt
er
ed int
o his j
ob,
kids and Tanya.
S
he did the sam
e t
o him,
except
f
or
t
he j
ob t
hing.
Her
j
ob was
to t
ake car
e of
t
he kids
and
the
hom
e.
asier
said
than
done
she
liked
this
phr
ase
ever
since.
Her
j
ob
impr
isoned
her
wishes
and
she
cou
ldn'
t
even wish f
or
her
fr
eedom.
And t
oday,
aft
er
mor
e t
han t
en years,
a lett
er
cam
e int
o
her
lif
e like a butt
erf
ly ca
rr
ying on it
s wings
words
wr
itt
en in
rainbow color
s. It was Wednesday and she wished t
o jum
p over
those t
hr
ee days int
o t
he Sunday su
nset.
She never
got
t
o know wh
en t
he kids cam
e back fr
om
the
school
and how
she
spent
the
r
est
of
the
day.
The
days had
st
art
ed f
lying wit
h her. In the night she wou
ld r
ead t
hat lett
er
to
the
m
oon,
t
he
st
ar
s
and
t
he
br
eeze.
She
wou
ld
t
ell
t
hem
stor
ies
of
her
love;
the
f
ir
st
t
im
e
she
m
et
Lar
ry,
her
f
ir
st
wor
ds and her
f
ir
st
kiss.
E
very inch of
her
m
em
or
y had a bond
to
a
whole
n
ew
m
em
or
y
it
self.
Now
she
r
em
em
ber
ed
ever
ything; every r
ay t
he sun ever
decant
ed on her
love.
Lif
e
had
t
aken
a
r
ight
t
urn
on
a
str
aight
highway
of
rou
tines.
The
or
bit
had
f
inally
broken.
S
he
cou
ld
f
eel
a
power
fu
l
fr
eedom
that
was
r
em
oving
those
m
onot
onou
s
thought
s f
rom
her
m
ind
and
inj
ect
ing
lif
e
int
o
her
veins.
Lif
e
was
wear
ing hope now.
The
t
im
e
fr
om
Su
nday
mor
ning
t
o
evening
was
hard
t
o
spend. Tim
e clock was snailing out
of t
he day and t
he sun got
hung up in m
id air.
Wind st
opped on t
he su
rf
ace of
wat
er
and
the shadows declined t
o shr
ink.
She
wished t
im
e was a horse
wit
h a t
ail on t
he f
or
ehead and she
wou
ld pu
ll it
f
rom
it
s t
ail.
She wished tim
e was a dr
y leaf
and she wou
ld t
hr
ou
gh it
in the
windst
orm
of
her
heart.
S
he
wished
t
im
e
was
a
boat
and
she
wou
ld sail it in t
he r
iver of her eyes. Bu
t t
oday,
t
im
e that
had
always been a t
eacher to her, had tu
rn int
o a t
easer. It wasn'
t
br
eathing at
all,
ju
st
holding it
s br
eath and t
easing her
m
or
e.
She
want
ed
the
t
im
e
to
f
ly
and
it
was
cr
a
wling.
S
he
tr
ied t
o
make her
self bu
sy in house chor
es but
her eyes qu
it
support
ing
her
hands
as
they
wer
e
st
ill
looking
at
t
he
sun.
A
nd t
he
sun
also kept
glar
ing at
her,
all day.
Finally t
he sun lost
the batt
le
and st
art
ed going down.
From
t
he vent
ilat
or,
it
had skid t
o the
window.
No one in t
he f
am
ily f
elt
any change in her. M
ike had t
o go t
o
meet
a client
and was qu
it
e bu
sy looking at
himself
and t
he kids
wer
e too involved looking at
the TV.
It
was an hour
t
o su
nset
and she was r
eady,
wear
ing her
best
dr
ess and wr
apped in her
favor
it
e fr
agr
ance.
S
he surr
ender
ed a cou
ple of
years fr
om
her
face and br
ou
ght
back a f
ew young sm
iles ont
o her
lips.
er
e
ar
e
you
going
dear?
her
pr
epar
at
ion
cou
ldn'
t
wag
e enou
gh r
esist
ance against
Mike'
s cu
r
iosit
y.
a,
well,
actu
ally
I
thou
ght
I
wou
ld
go
for
som
e
shopping
dly ut
t
er
ed.
! I
wou
ld go wit
h you.
going
ou
t
had
r
em
oved
her
att
ent
ion
f
rom
t
he
TV.
The
r
est
wer
e too absorbed t
hey didn'
t even list
en the conversat
ion.
eah dear,
why don'
t you
t
ake Nicole
wit
h you,
she cou
ld be
help.
Tanya didn'
t
f
eel
com
fort
able
having
a
company
at
t
hat
tim
e
but
she
didn'
t
want
t
o
change
M
ike'
s
cur
iosit
y
in
t
o
su
spicion so she said O
K.
All t
he way t
o the city cent
er,
Nicole kept
t
elling her
of
all
t
he
stuff
her
fr
iends
had
a
nd
what
she
want
ed
t
o
bu
y
in
r
esponse.
Tanya
wasn'
t
list
ening.
S
he
was
j
u
st
shaking
her
head in appr
oval of
what
ever
Nicole said.
She cou
ldn'
t possibly
have
said
a
word.
Her
heart
was
r
umbling
like
a
volcano,
hitt
ing t
he r
ib cage tr
ying to get
out
t
o t
ake
a look at
it
s long
lost
love.
The sun was hur
r
ying do
wn now. She was afr
aid of gett
ing lat
e
so she speeded u
p a litt
le.
!
Ar
en'
t
we
su
ppose t
o go t
o Cit
y C
ent
er?
Nicole
asked seeing her
tur
ning to a dif
f
er
ent str
eet.
es dear but
I have to t
ake car
e of som
et
hing im
port
ant
bef
or
e
we go shopping,
all r
ight?
ll r
ight.
was O
K f
or Nicole as long as it
didn'
t alt
er
their
shopping plan.
The
br
idge
was
gett
ing
closer
and
so
was
logic.
S
anit
y
had st
art
ed penetr
at
ing her
enthusiasm. The qu
est
io
n of
shou
ld I do it?
rned int
o
ld I do it?
her
m
emor
ies had st
art
ed declining.
S
he cou
ld see t
he br
idge
now.
She st
opped the car
a hu
ndr
ed yards away fr
om t
he br
idge.
Y
ou
st
ay in t
he car, I'
ll be back in a f
ew m
inut
es.
said
to
Nicole
without
a
slight
t
ou
ch
of
emot
ions.
She
didn'
t
wait
f
or
her
answer,
st
epped out
of
the car
in a m
echanical way
and st
art
ed walking t
owar
ds the br
idge.
Larr
y was st
anding on t
he cor
ner
of
the br
idge,
wit
h his
back t
o her.
He
was look
ing do
wn t
he br
idge int
o t
he running
wat
er.
She
walked
f
or
a
f
ew
yards
and
then
st
opped.
Larr
y
turned his f
ace t
owar
ds her. A
ge seem
ed to have worn him out.
He looked t
ir
ed as if he had tr
aveled a hu
ge mileage of
year
s.
His pr
esence sent
no waves of
fr
esh air
t
o clean her
heart
fr
om
the
mist
of
dissat
isf
act
ion.
He
disappoint
ed
her
again.
She
hoped t
o f
ind a r
ay of hope and he disappoint
ed her hope.
She
looked back t
owar
ds the car
at
her
daught
er.
oo mu
ch
to
lose,
I
don'
t
want
t
o
lose
m
y
t
en
year
s.
she
decided
and
turned back.
Larr
y r
an aft
er
her
but
she had r
eached her
car.
Larr
y
called
her
wit
h
a passionat
e
cry,
S
he
opened
the door
and sat in.
Lar
r
y st
opped abru
pt
ly
with shock stru
ck
eyes. Tanya tur
ned the car back.
ou
ar
e m
y wish Tanya!
y murm
ur
ed.
She st
epped
on the car.
Larr
y saw her
going into t
he sunset.
ommy?
ldn'
t cat
ch any idea out
of
it.
was a nobody m
y dear.
Tanya kept
dr
iving int
o the su
nset.
Unit4
：
Big Tom
If
all
the
m
ales
in
ou
r
company’s
d
orm
itory,
I
f
elt
the
most
aff
ect
ion
for
Tom.
He
was
a
geniu
s,
I
thou
ght,
but
the
other
gu
ys took him for
a nut.
He cam
e fr
om
f
ar
away,
and at
first
had
a st
rong S
panish
accent.
Now,
aft
er
a
year
with the
company,
he spoke
English ver
y
well.
But
his English
accent
had an exagger
at
ed pr
ecision that the other gu
ys didn’t like. In
the cr
ude environm
ent
of the dorm
it
or
y,
Tom
’s accent
seem
ed
art
if
icial.
But
he
was a big m
an,
a giant,
and str
ong as an ox,
and the ot
hers f
ear
ed him
and left
him alone.
I on t
he
ot
he
r hand had
a
weak
constitut
ion.
I
cou
ldn’t
digest
any r
eal f
ood and lived on litt
le mor
e than coff
ee.
My arm
s and
legs
wer
e as t
hin as st
em
s. A
nd
what
work did I do ther
e, you
may
well ask.
I was chief gar
bage m
an f
or
the dorm
it
or
y.
O
ur company had a
big
pr
oj
ect to bu
ild
a
r
einf
or
ced
concr
et
e
r
eservoir
out I a su
bu
rb sur
rounded by hills. A
t night
a port
ion
of the pr
oj
ect
was closed to u
s by m
eans of a big squ
ar
e gat
e
made of
br
ass. O
ne cold evening I was deposit
ing the gar
bage
from
su
pper
behind ou
r
dorm
it
or
y when I sa
w a tor
ch and the
shape of
a m
an passing through t
he gr
ass gat
e. I walked over.
“I knew it
was you,”
I said t
o Tom.
“It
’s open,”
he said.
“
Shall we go in?
”
“Don’t
you
know
we
shou
ldn’t
?
”
I
said.
“Y
ou
still
haven’t
adju
st
ed to t
he com
pany.”
“Adju
st?
”
he said.
“
I’d r
ather
qu
it.
Com
e.
What
ar
e you
afr
aid
of?
D
on’t
you
want
to invest
igat
e this port
ion?
”
He knew I did.
Alr
eady
it
seem
ed
inevit
able t
hat
I
wou
ld t
o
wit
h
him.
I
only
f
ear
ed that
t
he tor
ch wou
ld be not
iceable on the TV
monitor of
the chief
wat
chm
an.
“
Tur
n off
the t
or
ch,
”
I said,
and we
walked through the br
ass
squ
ar
e gat
e.
Tom
and I penetr
at
ed all t
he way to t
he cr
ane,
and
no wat
chm
an had yet
pur
su
ed us.
This giant
cr
ane was u
sed f
or
moving and placing t
he r
einfor
ced concr
et
e blocks. In t
he dark
we r
ecognized it by it
s shape
—
an imm
ense pillar of
zigzag r
ods.
At t
he top of
it,
we knew,
at
he peak,
wou
ld be the f
lag.
A
nd f
ar
over ou
r heads,
up in t
he dark sky,
wou
ld be t
he cr
ane’s giant
arm.
O
n the arm
was t
he banner
that
we sa
w ever
yday,
wi
t
h the
lett
ers ABC, t
he init
ial let
t
er
s of
ou
r
com
pany’s nam
e.
We had
ABC wr
itt
en on our shirt
s, t
oo,
and on the chair
s and beds wit
h
which our
dormitory was fu
rnished.
“Let
’s
go
up!”
said
Tom.
I
lau
ghed
—
but
Tom
e
had
spoken
in
earnest.
Str
ong
as
he
was,
he
r
eally
had
no
concept
of
aut
hor
it
y.
“
Tom,
you
ar
e
a
nut
!”
I said,
want
ing t
o
show
him
that
I
was
r
elu
ct
ant.
But in t
he end he convinced m
e,
and we mount
ed the
ladder
t
o
the
lift.
Ther
e
wer
e
t
wo
bu
ttons,
a
r
ed
one
and
a
gr
een one.
I pr
essed t
he latt
er,
ju
st
t
o see if t
he lift
m
ight
be
oper
at
ional.
It
was.
I
pr
essed
t
he
r
ed
butt
on
and
stopped
it.
Tom
e
got
in.
I
pr
essed the
gr
een
one
again
and
we
r
ose
and
rose
and
f
inally
r
eached
the t
op.
We
wer
e
at
the
peak
of
the
pillar, j
ust
underneat
h the f
lag. E
ven in t
h
e dar
k we wer
e close
enou
gh t
o see it.
B
ef
or
e us the cr
ane’s giant
arm
led of like a
road int
o the night.
It
s r
ods and all zigzag,
m
ade m
e f
eel t
hat
over
t
her
e wou
ld be, I saw,
a squ
ar
e gat
e,
som
e garbage and a
dormitory.
But
no.
O
ff
the end of
that
zigzag
r
oad r
eally wou
ld
be nothing
but
dark night.
The
geom
etr
y of
t
he
cr
ane
scar
ed
me.
“Let
’s walk out
t
o the banner!”
To the banner?
O
h, no.
This was t
oo mu
ch.
“I want
to see t
he ABC!”
said Tom
e.
“Com
e on!
”
why was his
voice so ur
gent?
What
did t
he want
that
ABC banner f
or?
“
Tom,
you
ar
e
too
bold,”
I
said.
“Y
ou
r
eally
have
no
concept
…..”
Bu
t
he
had
set
off.
I
was
ver
y
scar
ed,
but
som
ehow r
ose t
o the challenge and went
with him.
It
becam
e a
cont
est: who wou
ld be t
he f
irst
one t
o tou
ch t
he long banner?
I
was
half
way
along
t
he
arm
when
I
heard
t
he
wat
er
of
the
r
eservoir,
f
ar
u
nder
neat
h
us.
It
was
then
that
I
r
em
em
ber
ed
that the chief cr
ane oper
ator,
befor
e st
opping his work f
or
the
day,
wou
ld al
ways swing t
he giant
arm
so that
it
pr
oj
ect
ed out
over
t
he
wat
er.
Now
I
was r
eally scar
ed.
I held on t
o a r
od.
I
cou
ld f
eel t
he cof
f
ee I had dru
nk cou
ld and undigest
ed inside
me.
I did not
have Tom
’s ox
-like const
itu
tion.
“
Tom
!”
I
said.
I
did
not
possess
hi
boldness,
and
not
his
urgency.
“You
can’t
qu
it
now!
”
S
aid
Tom.
But
I
cou
ld
not
m
ove.
I
was
trapped.
Tom
had r
eached t
he banner.
He
was a dar
k shape,
loosening
the knots that held the banner to the r
ods.
“ I possess t
he ABC!”
he said got
what
he want
ed.
He put
his
other
hand on what
he t
hou
ght
was a r
od,
but
it
was the
wir
e
that
wou
ld shock him.
They
said
lat
er
that
t
he
nut
s on the
box
that
sur
r
ounded the
wir
e
wer
e loose and had com
e unscr
ewed.
The box had f
allen
away,
and t
he
wir
e was exposed.
Tom
e never
panicked.
He looked at
m
e as if
I wer
e f
ar
away.
But his legs wou
ld not
hold him up.
Wr
apped in the banner, he
f
ell, like a baby bir
d f
rom
a nest. It was I
who panicked, wh
en
I
hear
d
him
hit
and
vanish
underneath
t
he
wat
er
of
the
r
eservoir.
M
aybe
his
f
all
had
not
been
f
at
al,
but
wou
ld
m
y
beloved Tom
now dro
wn?
It
was possibl
e.
I began t
o cal f
or
help.
We
spent
an
anxiou
s
f
ort
night
in
the
dorm
it
or
y.
While
the
other
s wou
ld t
alk about
his vit
alit
y, I st
ar
ed at j
eans and socks
of
the
vanishing nut.
The
dorm
was
a dif
f
er
ent
place
wit
hout
his pr
ecise English.
An X
-r
ay scan had r
evealed that
he wou
ld
need
an
oper
at
ion.
And
of
cour
se
t
he
big
ox
had
to
r
ecover
from t
he
exposur
e t
o the
cold
wat
er.
Ther
e
was
a m
ent
ion
in
the m
edia of Tom
’s shock and f
all,
and t
he TV
guys wer
e going
to com
e and see
what
we
wer
e doing at
the r
eservoir
proj
ect,
unt
il t
heir
invest
igat
ion was canceled.
But
t
he aut
hor
it
ies did
invest
igat
e ou
r company.
Their invest
igat
ion r
evealed that
the
squ
ar
e
gat
e
had
been
left
open,
and t
he
box
sur
rounding the
wir
e had com
e off.
The com
pany r
einfor
ced t
he squ
ar
e gat
e wit
h m
or
e br
ass, and
put
a
new
box
back
onto
t
he
arm,
scr
ewing
it
s
nut
s
t
ight
ly.
They t
ight
ened u
p t
he
knot
s
of t
he
new banner,
and
even
put
anew banner all down the cr
ane’s pillar, t
his latt
er one having
not
only t
he init
ials ABC but
all the lett
ers of t
he nam
e of
the
su
bur
b.
And they put
a bigger
f
lag on t
he cr
ane.
The
com
pany
enhanced
the
author
it
y
of
the
chief
wat
chm
an.
No
w we had t
o sign in when wer
e cam
e back to the dorm
it
or
y,
and sign out. Even when I t
ook out
the garbage in the evening,
I had t
o
sign
in t
he
and
out
! B
esides,
they f
urnish t
heir
chief
gar
bage m
an
with
a tor
ch
in
case I
shou
ld
see
any shapes
of
people
Unit5
The color
s of
f
all r
ust
le thr
ou
gh t
he tr
ees on this br
isk O
ct
ober
morning in1990.
J
ason and his sist
er
J
oanna get int
o t
he car t
o
dr
ive
t
o
school.
J
ason
is
dr
iving
t
his
m
or
ning.
He
has
ju
st
r
eceived his perm
it and is ver
y anxiou
s t
o st
ar
t dr
iving on his
own.
His sist
er
J
oanna is a year
older
than him
and is showing
him
t
he
f
iner
point
s
of
dr
iving.
Today,
she
decides
that
he
shou
ld dr
ive t
o school.
He t
akes the wheel and pr
oceeds slowly
do
wn t
he back r
oads t
o Massabesic High S
chool in Wat
erbor
o,
Maine. These ar
e back countr
y r
oads and the t
wist
s and hair
pin
turns
cau
se
J
ason
to
dr
ive
slowly
and
caut
iou
sly.
He
t
akes
each tu
rn wit
h a bit
of
br
avado and his sist
er
t
eases him t
hat
he
is being a “
wimp”
and to speed u
p a bit.
They will be lat
e f
or
school if he doesn'
t st
ep on it
! He pr
esses t
he gas pedal do
wn
and
acceler
at
es
but
f
inds
it
dif
f
icu
lt
t
o
m
anage
the
st
eer
ing
wheel pr
oper
ly.
His sist
er
t
ells him
t
o wat
ch t
he road t
easingly
but
he
tur
ns
t
o
t
ell
her
a
sm
art
r
em
ar
k
and
doesn'
t
see
the
em
bankm
ent
ahead
of
him. Ju
st
a second
of
dist
r
act
ion
sends
the car
down the em
bankm
ent
and t
he car
r
olls over
and over
and
hit
s
a
tr
ee.
J
ason'
s
head
hit
s
t
he
windshield
and
he
is
trapped bet
ween t
hat
and the st
eer
ing wheel.
He can'
t br
eathe
and
is
losing
consciou
sness.
J
oanna tr
ies
desper
at
ely t
o
fr
ee
him,
but
is unable t
oo.
S
he does t
he only thing possible and t
hat
is t
o escape out of
t
he open window and f
ind
help...f
ast!
Joanna
r
eaches
the
hou
se
and
calls
the
am
bu
lance
f
or
her
br
other.
They arr
ive wit
hin m
inut
es but
J
ason is u
nconsciou
s.
They have t
o extr
icat
e him wit
h t
he “J
aws of Lif
e.
” He is t
aken
to
t
he
hospit
al
and
f
or
t
hr
ee
days
he
lies
bet
ween
lif
e
and
deat
h. He is br
eathing only wit
h t
he assist
ance of
a r
espir
at
or.
He has lim
it
ed br
ain act
ivit
y. The doct
or
s t
ake Joey aside and
t
ell him
t
hat
J
ason will
have ext
ensive br
ain dam
age and t
hat
ther
e
is no
r
eal hope that
J
ason
wou
ld be
norm
al
again.
J
oey
must m
ake a decision wh
ether t
o tur
n off
the r
espir
ator and let
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
本文更新与2021-01-22 22:32，由作者提供，不代表本网站立场，转载请注明出处：https://www.bjmy2z.cn/gaokao/551948.html
-
上一篇：经典幽默英语故事(30个) (1)讲课稿
下一篇：英语的重要性演讲稿