A Lesson in Living

For nearly a year, I stopped around the house, the Store, the school and the church, like anold biscuit, dirty and inedible in edabl, Then l met, or rather got to know, the lady who threw memy first lifeline
Mrs. Bertha Flowers was the aristocrat aeristekrae of Black Stamps, She had the grace ofcontrol to appear warm in the coldest weather, and on the Arkansas summer davs it seemed shehad a private brearound, cooling her 驾电的显线风27午市日手生，加Her skin was a rich black that would have peeled like a plum if snageed, but then no onewould have thought of getting close enough to Mrs. Flowers to ruffle her dress, let alone snagher skin, She didn’t encourage familiarity, She wore gloves totand has remained throughout mShe was one of the few eentlewomenlife, the measure of what a human being can be3团-万不多的费日人之3日是
She appealed to me bec personally. Like womerr loval dogs racing at an Ehelsh hoves who wwerel wwto therespectful distance. Like the women who sat in front of roaring fireplaces, drinking tea”heathincessanthti3vs tuofsconesWothen who walked ower thetrotn swe3h0 C0U00DetSand read Moroccodivided by a hyphen, lt would be safeand had two last nato sav that she made me proud to be Negro iust by being herself加吸下那，因为加馨你美从来没有各自遇到过的那此/动电的人非在招逢曲电在不警管是2华23 忠劲:的小狗奔跑在她的身旁，的距真以示煎散。她就像巫在如火能能的壁炉市的女人，不时从装满蛋糕和松脆饼的银热中取杂唱她斯像走在“石南从生的荒里”中，请着用摩洛哥山羊皮装订的书，而目有用连字符隔开两个姓氏的那些女人。好像那就是她原质太木的样子，使我为自己几个里人而威到白辱，这一占是证康留断的
One summer afternoon, sweet-milk fresh in my memory, she stopped at the Store to buyprovisions. Another Negro woman of her health and age would have been expected to carry thpaper sacks home in one hand, but Momma ‘mpmel said, “sister Flowers, i’ll send Bailev up to
your house with these things.””Thank you, Mrs. Henderson. I’d prefer Marguerite [ ma ga ri tl, though” My name wasbeautiful when she said it. “I’ve been meaning to talk to her, anyway They gave each othel
agegroup looks.There was a little path besides the rocky road, and Mrs. Flowers walked in front swinging hearms and picking her way over the stones.
She said, without turning her head, to me, “ hear you are doing very good school workMarguerite, but that is it’s all written, The teachers report that they have trouble getting you tctalk in class” We passed the triangular farm on our left and the path widened to allow us to wortogether. l hung back in the separate unasked and unanswerable questions. 听说你在学季里功课很好，具好丽4，值那都是节面作业说起价1得难到在课上发育我们走过左边三角形的农场，小路少宽了，我们可以并推走在一起35 0
批注IT1: 不能食用的，这里可以结合小编对本文的背景知识介绍，文章作者在小的时候经历很悲惨。批注 T2): 出类拔萃者。
批注1T31: 这里指日用品。
批注IT4:指那些虽未提出来，但是却被此心里明白的问

‘Come and walk along with me, Marguerite” ! couldn’t have refused even if l wanted to, Shepronounced my name so nicely. Or more correctly, she spoke each word with such clarity that !was certain a foreigner who didn’t understand English could have understood her.’Now no one is going to make vou talk-..-possible no one can. But bear in mind, language isman’s way of communicating with his fellow man and it is language alone which separates himfrom the lower animals” That was a totally new idea to me, and l would need time to think about。但是你记住，语言是人类进行迁”现没有人要晶珀你说日D2沟通的方式，是语言将人类同低等动物区分开来我需要这对我来说具
些面h直若店”Your grandmother says you read a lot. Every chance you get. That’s good, but not goodenough, Words mean more than what is set down on paper, it takes the human voice to infusethem with the shades of deeper meaning.闻的今义不仅是写在生是的那些，它需要人声音眼子工重深层面意里
I memorized the part about the human voice infuse in words. It seemed to so valid andpoetic.
She said she was going to give me some books and that I not only must read them, I mustread them aloud. She suggested that l try to make a sentence sound in as many different ways aspossible h我不仅阅读这些书，还要大声朗读，她建议我用尽可能多的方式朗读一句话
“ will accept no excuse if vou return a book to me that has been badly handled” Myimagination boggled at the punishment ] would deserve if in fact I did abuse a book of Mrs.Flowers’. Death would be too kind and brief.”如果你没有好好的读这些书就还给我的话，现是
E4EH
The odors in the house surprised me. Somehow l had never connected Mrs, Flowers withfood or eating or any other common experience of common people, There must have been anouthouse, too, but my mind never recorded it.The sweet scent ofvanilla had met us as she opened the door. 她打门]，香草间的务芳迎
面扑朱
“I made tea cookies this morning, You see, had planned to invite vou for cookies anc
lemonade so we could have this little chat. The lemonade is in the icebox.It followed that Mrs, Flowers would have ice on an ordinary day, when most families in ourtown bought ice late on Saturdays only a few times during the summer to be used in the woodeicecream freezers
“Have a seat, Marguerite. Over there by the table she carried a platter covered with a teatowel, Although she warned that she hadn’t tried her hand at baking sweets for some time, I wacertain that like evervthing else about hewould be perfectAs I ate she began the first of what we late callec”my lesson in living” She said that I mustalways be intolerant of ignorance but understanding of illiteracy. That some people, unable to goprofessors. She encouragecto school were more educated and even more intellipent than collepeme to listen carefully to what country people called mother wit, That in those homely savings
Lesson 8A Lesson in Living
批注[T5):有效的，正确的，
批注 T6): To handle-to deal with,，此处 handle a book 的含义是读一本好书。
批注IT7:= deserved more han death.我应该受到比死更严厉的慈罚。
批注T8: 文盲。
批注[T9:Mother wit;天生的智慧。

was couched the collective wisdom of generations.我吃点心的时候，她开始给我讲我们后来你之为“我生活中的一课”的第一部分。她告诉我一定不要容忍无知《无知是不学习的后果)但应理解未受过教育的人(因为文自往往是因为贫穷而被剥夺了受教育的机会)。她认为有些人虽然没有上过学，但却比大学教授更有知识、更聪明。她还鼓励我认真倾听被乡下人形对天更的hb5315店65E房/EC5When I finish the cookies, she brushed off the table and brought a thick, small book from thebookcase. I had read A Tale of 7wo Cities and found it up to my standards as a romantic novel. Sheopened the first page and I heard the poetry for the first time in my life.”lt was the best of times and the worst of times…” her voice slid in and curved down throughand over the words. She was nearly singing. I wanted to look at the pages. Were they the samethat i had read? Or were there notes, music, lined on the pages, as in the hymn book? liy i! 52900221是国的和0计 3 0227不国43? Her soundsbegan cascading gently. I knew from listening to a thousand preachers [ pri lez) that she wasnearing the end of her reading, and i hadn’t really heard, heard to understand, a single word
批注IT101: 指抑扬顿控的朗诵声。
批注[TI1: 费美诗集。
How do vou like that?
It occurred to me that she expected a response, The sweet vanilla flavor was still on mytongue and her reading was a wonder in my ears, l had to speakI said, “Yes, ma’am” it was the least I could do, but it was the most also”There’s one more thing, Take this book of poems and memorize one for me. Next time youpay me a visit, l want vou to recite.i have tried often to search behind the sophistication of vears for the enchantment I soeasily found in those gifts, The essence escapes but its aura remains, To be allowed, no, invitedinto the private lives of strangers . their iovs and fears was a chance to exchangethe Southern bitter wormwood for a cup of mead with Beowulf or a hot cup of tea and milkwith Oliver Twist, Whenl said aloud, “t is a far, far better thing that i do, than lhave everdone…”” (这是引自《双城记》) Tears oflove filled my eyes at my selflessness，在经历了成下了就让我陶醉了。书中号的有杂生活后我多次试图歪消楚为什当mis台我09切的内容已经忘却，但条韵仍存。被准诉，昨陌生人的私生活电，与她价不。是感汲遭证人共同分享喜悦和恐识，使我有机会用南方的苦艾向贝奥武夫换得一杯蜜酒或向雾都孤儿换礼当我大声的说，”这比我做过的任何一件事情都要好得多..”时，我为自己的杯热奶茶忘我面涌出产的泪2
On that first day, I ran down the hill and into the road (few cars ever came along it) and hadthe good sense to stop running before l reach the Store.i was liked, and what a different it made. I was respected not as Mrs. Henderson’s grandchildor Bailey’s sister but just for being Marguerite JohnsorChildhood’s logic never asks to be proved (all conclusions are absolute). I didn’t questionwhy Mrs. Flowers had singled me out for attention, nor did it occurred to me that Mommamight have asked her to give me a little talking to. AllI cared about was that she had made teacookies for me and read to me from her favorite book, It was enough to prove that she liked me该想时的逻蛋永远不需要证对C所有的结论帮绝对的)RMe没有回为个Fowers
Lesson 8A Lesson in Living
批注TT121:这里苦艾比喻她童年在南方的那段苦涩的经13
批注IT131: 我(成才后)被人喜爱，受人尊敬。
夫人单单关注,我也从来没有想过也许是奶奶曾请求她开导我一下。我只关心她曾给我做点心吃，为我朗诗过她心爱的书。这些足以证明她喜欢我
Momma and Bailey were waiting inside the Store. He said, “My, what did she give you?” Hehad seen the books, but l held the paper sack with his cookies in my arms shielded by the poem.Momma said, “Sister, I know you acted like a little lady. That do my heart good to see settlecpeople talk to you all. I’m trying my best, the Llord knows, but these days…” Her voice trailed off.”Go on in and change your dress” 以in:国人加生年，3国时首依表国康您个正乐业的人宣欢你有那感到促成刷。那门经尺一最人的赵为，
please write a short passage on the topic “The Lesson Mrs. Flowers Teaches Marguerite.For nearly a year, l stopped around the house, the Store, the school and the church.Butevervthing changed when she met Bertha FlowersMrs, Flowers was the aristocrat of Black Stamps, One summer afternoon, she stopped at thestore to buy provisions and then invited Marguerite to the home, She prepared cookies andemonade for her when they had a little chat.Mrs. Flowers appealed to Marguerite because she was one of the few gentlewomen andremained the measure of what a human being could be. She told Marguerite that language waman’s ways of communicating with his fellow man and language along separated him from theower animals. She said words might mean more than what was sit down on paper and humaroice could infuse them with deeper meaning. Mrs. Flowers also read a book for her, lt was likeboetry to her She gavee her books and asked the little girlto read them aloud, Mrs Flowerlso taught her a lesson in living that day. She told the little girl she should be intolerant ofignorance but understanding of illiteracy. She encouraged Marguerite to listen carefully aboutwhat country people called mother wit.What Mrs. Flower had done made a big difference. For the first time little girl realized shewas liked and respected. She was happy that she was allowed and invited into the private lives ofstrangers. When she left Mrs. Flowers home, she ran down the hill and had the good sense to storrunning before she reached the store
#注 (T14): Here it refers to people who have settled down irone place and become used to the way of life there, and alscinancially comfortable.#注 T15): It might mean: but these days life is so hard forthe blacks.