Mr. and Mrs. Green were very worried about their son, Daniel. He was born normal (正常) in every other way,1 seemed to be dumb (哑的). Mr. and Mrs. Green tried everything to get him to 2, but with no success.
When Daniel was six years old, the best doctors in the town examined (检查) him3, but could find nothing wrong. And he seemed to be smart. It was just that he 4 spoke.
“There might be something wrong with his 5, and he doesn't know he's able to speak,” one doctor said.
“But he can read and write,” said Mr. Green, “We've written him notes, telling him to speak some day.”
“It's certainly very 6,” another doctor said. “Perhaps he will be able to speak some day.”
7passed. Daniel went to university. But he didn't speak a single word.
Then one day Daniel was having a meal with his parents. Without any warning, he looked up from his 8 and said, “Pass me the salt, please.”
Mr and Mrs Green were excited. “You spoke! You spoke!” they cried. “Why have you 9 so long to speak?”
“I didn't have anything to say,” he said. “Until now everything was10. But you forgot to put salt in these potatoes.”
When you are about to do something brave, a cheerful wish of “Good luck!” from a friend can be helpful. But if you think you need lots of luck, what else might you do?
In the UK and US there are some strange traditions for bringing yourself a little more good luck. Some are hundreds of years old and some are much newer.
Have you heard the saying “When you wish upon a star”? If you are looking up at the sky on a clear night and you see a sudden flash of light, it is probably a shooting star! Seeing one doesn't happen very often. The saying goes that if you see one you have been very lucky, and so if you make a wish, it will come true.
Maybe you have heard of the lucky rabbit's foot. Some people believe that rabbits are lucky animals, so they carry a part of the rabbit, its foot, for good luck. There are all kinds of strange, unclear rules about which of the rabbit's feet is the luckiest. It is said that this good luck tradition is the oldest one of all. However, as the funny saying goes, “Depend on the rabbit's foot if you will, but remember it didn't work for the rabbit!”
People in Britain love trees. If it is autumn and leaves are falling from the trees, some people try to catch the leaves as they fall because they think each leaf they catch will bring them a lucky month in the following year—they will need to catch 12 falling leaves to have a whole year of good luck!
One afternoon I visited an art museum while waiting for my husband to finish a business meeting. I was looking forward to a quiet view of the art works.
A young couple viewing the paintings ahead of me chatted nonstop (不停) between themselves. I watched them a moment and found the wife was doing all the talk. I admired (赞赏) the husband for putting up with her continuous (持续的) talk. Distracted (分心) by their noise, I moved on.
I met with them many times as I moved through the different rooms of art. Each time I heard her continuous talk, I moved away quickly.
I was standing at the counter (柜台) of the museum gift shop when the couple came near to the exit. Before they left, the man reached into his pocket and pulled out a white thing. He extended (展开) it into a long stick and then tapped (敲打) his way into the coatroom to get his wife's jacket.
“He's a brave man.” The salesman at the counter said, “Most of us would give up (放弃) if we were blind (瞎的) at such a young age. But he said his life wouldn't change during his recovery (恢复). So, as before, he and his wife come in when there's a new art show.”
“But how does he enjoy the art?” I asked, “He can't see.”
“Can't see? You're wrong. He sees a lot. More than you or I do.” The clerk said, “His wife describes each painting so he can see it in his head.”
I learned something from the couple that day. I saw a young wife describing paintings to a person without sight (视力) and a husband who would not allow blindness to change his life. And I saw the love shared by two people as I watched this couple walk away hand in hand.
K.L. Rothey, 71, from the United States, a retired lawyer (退休律师)
Rothey has given himself the Chinese name of Luqi or “roadside beggar (乞丐)”. In his eyes, beggars are doing important work—collecting rubbish. What they do is not dirty.
Rothey first visited China in 1984 and soon he became interested in Chinese culture. Married to a Chinese woman, he lived in Huangshi. Many people know him because he often shows up in the street collecting rubbish. “Huangshi is my home so I hope it becomes cleaner and more beautiful,” says Rothey. He has also organized volunteers to collect rubbish in other cities, including Wuhan.
Jill Robinson, 50, from Britain, founder (创立者) and CEO of Animals Asia Foundation.
She has been working for nearly 20 years to stop people from getting the bile (胆汁) from moon bears.She began working for the International Fund for Animal Welfare in Hong Kong in the mid-1980s. A business trip to a bear farm in 1993 changed her life. She saw so many moon bears killed by people. She said she would be back to set them free.
In 1998, she set up the Animal Foundation. In July 2000, the foundation agreed to free 500 farmed moon bears. In 2002, the Moon Bear Rescue (救援) Center was set up in Chengdu.
“As much as we save them, they save us. These bears save us every day and they teach us to be better people,” Robinson says.
Name | K.L.Rothey | Jill Robinson |
Nationality (国籍) | Britain | |
Age | 71 Years old | 50 years old |
Events | He first visited China in 1984 and became interested in Chinese culture. He often rubbish in the street in Huangshi. He has also organized volunteers to collect rubbish in other cities. | She began working for the international Fund for Animal Welfare in the mid-1980s. A trip to a bear farm changed her life in 1993. In , the Moon Bear Rescue Center was set up in Chengdu. |
The two passages are about two foreigners who have helped to Chinese lives with their contributions (贡献). We should learn from them. | ||
