新外研版

高中英语

第三册

Unit 2

A

Understanding ideas

课文再现

 

英汉对照

The Well that Changed the World

改变世界的井

 

As a six-year-old Canadian schoolboy, Ryan had trouble believing the words spoken by his teacher that many people in developing African countries couldn’t get enough clean water. He looked across the classroom at the drinking fountain. It was very close—only ten steps away. So, Ryan asked himself, “Why do some African children have to walk ten kilometres to get water every day? And why is the water so dirty that it makes them sick?” Young Ryan thought, “Life is easy for me, but hard for those people. Why don’t I help?”

 

年仅六岁的加拿大小学生瑞安难以相信老师所说的话：在欠发达的非洲国家，许多人都喝不到足够的干净的水。他的目光掠过教室，望向对面的喷泉式饮水器，它是那么近——只有十步之遥。因此，瑞安问自己：“为什么有些非洲儿童每天要步行十公里去取水？为什么他们会因为喝了不卫生的水而生病？”年幼的瑞安想道：“我的生活很舒适，但他们的生活却那么艰难，我为什么不去帮帮他们呢？”

 

At first, his plan was to earn money to build a single well somewhere in Africa. He cleaned windows and did gardening for his family and neighbours. He soon reached his first target of $70, but when he gave the money to a charity, he was told that it actually cost $2,000 to build a well. Seventy dollars was only enough for a hand pump. Ryan understood that a hand pump wouldn’t help the children. What they needed was a well dug near their homes.

 

起初，他的计划是赚钱在非洲挖一口井。通过帮助家人和邻居们擦窗户、做园艺，他很快就达到了他的第一个目标——70美元，但当他把这笔钱捐给慈善机构时，他才得知挖一口井实际上需要花费2,000美元。70美元只够买一个手压泵。瑞安明白一个手压泵帮不了非洲的孩子们。他们需要的是一口离家不远的井。

 

Two thousand dollars was a lot of money, but Ryan didn’t give up. He was determined to help other children have clean water. He started to ask for help from his classmates and neighbours and persuaded them to donate money. At the same time, a friend of Ryan’s mother helped make his story go public. After several months, Ryan had raised the $2,000, with which a well was built near a primary school in Uganda. The children at the school no longer needed to walk for hours to get water. They were grateful to him and invited him to visit.

 

2,000美元可是一笔大数目，但是瑞安并没有放弃。他下定决心要帮助其他孩子获得干净的水。他开始向同学和邻居求助，说服他们捐款。与此同时，在瑞安妈妈的一位朋友的帮助下，瑞安的事为公众所知了。几个月后，瑞安筹集了2,000美元，在乌干达一所小学附近建造了一口井。这所学校的孩子们再也不用走几小时的路去打水了。他们非常感激瑞安，并邀请瑞安前来参观。

 

In Uganda, Ryan at last saw the finished well with his own eyes. But that was not all. He also saw hundreds of delighted students who had turned out to welcome him. They sang and danced happily. Some even offered him food and gifts. At first Ryan was nervous, but soon a great warmth filled him. He really had made a difference for these children. He broke into a joyful smile.

 

在乌干达，瑞安终于亲眼看到了打好的井。不仅如此，他还看到了几百名学生兴高采烈地欢迎他。他们高兴地唱歌跳舞。有的学生还为他送上了食物和礼物。一开始瑞安还有点紧张，但很快他就感到一阵温暖。他真的改变了这些孩子的生活。他突然笑了起来。

 

Later, Ryan’s experience led him to set up a foundation to encourage more people to help. Many inspired people gave him their support. Ryan’s foundation continues to attract support from more and more people, so the work of building more wells can go on. Today, over 800,000 people in 16 countries across Africa have benefited from the life-changing gift of clean, safe water.

 

后来，这段经历促使瑞安建立了一个基金会，以鼓励更多的人提供帮助。许多深受鼓舞的人都给与瑞安支持。瑞安的基金会不断吸引着越来越多的人给予帮助，从而使打井事业能够继续。如今，这份能改变人一生的礼物——干净卫生的水——已经惠及了非洲16个国家的80多万人。

 

Now, as an adult, Ryan says that the question to ask is not “Why don’t I help?”, but “How can I help today?”. This insight grew from the determined attitude of a six-year-old boy who had the courage and perseverance to make his dream a reality.

 

如今，瑞安已长大成人，他不再问“我为什么不去帮助他们？”，而是“如今我该如何去帮助他们？”。这份领悟，始于一个有勇气和毅力实现梦想的六岁男孩那颗坚定不移的心。

 

　　

 

　　

 

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