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After I started going to school my father scarcely talked any more. I was very intoxicated by the new game of spelling; my father had little skill for it (it was my mother who wrote our letters) and was convinced I was no longer interested in hearing him tell of his adventures during the long weeks when he was far away from the house.
One day, however, he said to me: "The time's come to show you something."

He asked me to follow him. I walked behind him, not talking, as we had got in the habit of doing. He stopped in the field before a clump of leafy bushes.
"Those are called alders," he said.
"I know."
"You have to learn how to choose," my father pointed out.
I didn't understand. He touched each branch of the bush, one at a time, with religious care.
"You have to choose one that's very fine, a perfect one, like this."
I looked; it seemed exactly like the others.

My father opened his pocket knife and cut the branch he'd selected with pious care. He stripped off the leaves and showed me the branch, which formed a perfect Y.
"You see," he said, "the branch has two arms. Now take one in each hand. And squeeze them."
I did as he asked and took in each hand one fork of the Y, which was thinner than a pencil.
"Close your eyes," my father ordered, "and squeeze a little harder.. . Don't open your eyes! Do you feel anything?"
"The branch is moving!" I exclaimed, astonished.

参考译文
自从我上学，父亲几乎没讲过什么。我对拼写这个新游戏很感兴趣，而父亲对此几乎不了解（母亲是家里的书信的），他以前总给我离家时的长时间内经历的冒险故事，而我相信，自己再也不会像以前那样那么感兴趣了。然而，有一天，父亲告诉我：“该给你看些东西的时候了。”

他让我跟他走，我就一声不吭地跟他走，这是我们的习惯。他在一块前面是一丛茂盛灌木的田地前停住了。
“这是桤木。”他说。
“我知道。”
“你要学会如何挑选，”父亲指着说。
我并不知道。他每次指向灌木的一个树枝，宗教般地虔诚。
“必须选择很优良、完美的那个，就像这支。”
我看了看，这个好像和别的一模一样。

父亲打开他的袖珍小刀，极其小心地切下他选的那支。他剥掉叶子，让我看这个树杈，这是个完美的“Y”字型。
“你看，”他说，“这个树杈有两个分枝，现在每只手抓住一个，挤压它们。”
我按他说的样子做了，每只手抓住这个“Y”的一个叉，这比铅笔还要细。
“闭上眼睛，”父亲命令道，“再用力些...不要睁开眼睛！你感觉到什么了吗？”
“树枝在动！”我惊呼。

词汇释义

1.intoxicated 喝醉的,极其兴奋的

例句：
The couple were intoxicated by the beauty of the night.
这对恋人被夜色的美丽陶醉了。

2.convinced adj. 信服的

例句：
I am convinced of his honesty.
我对他的诚实深信不疑。

3.religious adj. 宗教的

例句：
The religious affairs have been reestablished.
宗教事务已经恢复。

4.strip n. 长条,条状 v. 脱衣,被剥去,剥夺

例句：
They stripped off and jumped into the pool.
他们脱掉衣服，跳进了池子。

5.squeeze n. 压榨,挤 v. 紧握,挤

例句：
It took some ingenuity to squeeze all the furniture into the little room.
把全部家具都塞进那个小房间是很费了一番心思的。

难句讲解

1.was convinced I was no longer interested in hearing him tell of his adventures during the long weeks when he was far away from the house.

【参考译文】他以前总给我离家时的长时间内经历的冒险故事，而（我）相信，自己再也不会像以前那样那么感兴趣了。
【结构解析】这里用了hear sb. do sth.的结构，意思是“是听见某人干什么事情”，这个动作可能持续了很久，但是这个句子不强调你在这个过程的什么时候听见的。而hear sb doing sth 是听见某人“正在”干某事，强调这个句子所描述的瞬间。

2.The time's come to show you something.

【参考译文】该给你看些东西的时候了。
【结构解析】这句话相当于"It is the time to show you something"。

3.My father opened his pocket knife and cut the branch he'd selected with pious care

【参考译文】父亲打开他的袖珍小刀，极其小心地切下他选的那支。
【结构解析】“ he'd selected with pious care”前面省略了"which"，这里做定语从句，修饰“ branch”。