for Wild Things
美音、自然拼读、分级阅读与词汇复习
After a long day riding the estancia with the gauchos, Alejandro spotted an SUV parked in front of the main house.
Alejandro发现一辆SUV停在正殿前。
His mother, Melissa, appeared at the door next to a tall, fair-skinned man Alejandro didn’t recognize.
他的母亲Melissa出现在一个高个子,
“Please consider the offer, Señora Ortega.
“请考虑这一提议,奥特加女士。
I’ll return in two weeks to discuss our future plans,” the man said with a broad smile.
我将在两周后回来讨论我们的未来计划,
“Together we can save this beautiful place.”
“一起拯救这个美丽的地方。 “
“Who was that?”
“那是谁? “
Alejandro asked his mother as the SUV sped away in a cloud of dust.
亚历杭德罗问他母亲,因为SUV被一团尘埃所冲走。
“Someone with an idea,” his mother replied as she turned to go inside.
他的母亲回答说,“有一个想法的人”,当时她转身进去。
“Please go find Martín— we all need to have a talk.”
“请去找马丁——我们都需要谈谈。 “
She had never spoken to him in that tone before, and Alejandro had an uneasy feeling.
她以前从未用这种语气和他交谈过,亚历杭德罗也有一种不安的感觉.
“What is it?”
“这是什么? “
Martín asked when Alejandro found him, but the boy could only shrug.
马丁问亚历杭德罗何时发现他,但男孩只能发作.
When they returned to the house, his mother was sitting at the dining table.
他们回到家后,他的母亲坐在餐桌上.
Martín leaned against a post and sharpened the long blade of his facón.
Martín靠在柱子上并磨去他法孔的长刀.
“I have received an offer from Mr.
“我收到了特别报告员的提议。
Somerset to sell the estancia to Eco-Tours International,” Melissa began.
Melissa开始将Estancia出售给生态图尔国际。
Alejandro was surprised, not only by the offer but also that his mother was including him in the conversation.
亚历杭德罗惊讶地说,不仅这个提议,而且他的母亲把他包括在谈话中.
Since his father’s death two years ago, she had relied solely on Martín.
自从他父亲两年前去世以来,她一直只依靠马丁。
“I’ve always hoped to maintain our land in the true gaucho tradition and keep it in the family.
“我一直希望以真正的gaucho传统来维护我们的土地,
Sadly, as you both know, we’re losing money because the land is overgrazed.
可惜的是,你们都知道,我们输了钱,因为土地被过度放牧。
I’m just not sure how much longer we can keep the place going.”
我不知道我们还能维持多久。 “
Alejandro’s heart dropped as he thought of his father.
亚历杭德罗的心像他父亲一样倒下。
He had always said the estancia—the land, people, and animals—was a family.
他一直说,土地、人民和动物是一家人。
With a sigh, his mother explained, “Eco-Tours International wants to buy the land, build a resort, and create a—how did he put it?
他的母亲叹息地说,“生态图尔国际想买地,建造度假地,并创造一个——他怎么说的?
—‘a destination for travelers to experience the legendary gaucho way of life and the stunning beauty of Patagonia.’
旅行者的目的地 体验传说中的Gaucho生活方式 和美丽的巴塔哥尼亚。 " ; "
“Not travelers—tourists!”
" 不是旅行者-旅游者! "
Martín almost spat the words.
马丁几乎吐出的话。
“Ha!
“哈! (掌声)
You thought I was just a tourist when Gerson brought me down from Santiago,” Melissa said.
Melissa说:“Gerson把我从圣地亚哥带下来时,
“Even so, I was in awe of you gauchos, with your traditional berets, bombacha pantaloons, and leather boots.
“即使如此,我仍对你们这些贱民感到敬畏,他们拥有传统的贝雷帽、平底裤和皮靴。
They just want to experience a bit of this culture, and I can’t say I blame them.”
我无法怪他们。 “
“Other estancias have already gone under from overgrazing,” she continued.
她接着说,“其他农牧业者已经从过度放牧中脱身了”。
“This is a hard life.”
“这是艰难的生活。 “
She rubbed her forehead and sighed.
她擦了额头并叹了口气。
“Somerset said Alejandro and I could stay on for five years if we wanted, with me assisting with the management.”
“萨默塞特说,如果我们愿意,我和亚历杭德罗可以继续工作五年,由我协助管理。 “
“What would we do after that?”
“此后我们该怎么办? “
Alejandro asked, trying to keep his anxiety in check.
亚历杭德罗问,试图控制他的焦虑.
“What would happen to Martín and the other gauchos?
“Martín和其他gauchos会怎么样?
Some of them have been here more than thirty years!”
他们中有些人在这里已经超过30年了!”
“I’m not sure,” his mother said almost in a whisper.
“我不知道,”他母亲几乎悄悄地说:
“But Dad said—” Alejandro stopped himself, as he knew the situation was difficult for his mother, too.
“但是,爸爸说——”亚历杭德罗自己停下来,因为他知道情况对他母亲也是困难的。
“Do we have to decide right now?”
“我们必须现在就作出决定吗? “
Martín asked.
马丁问道.
“Two weeks,” Melissa replied.
Melissa回答说,“两个星期”。
“Then we have two weeks to find an answer,” Alejandro said, trying to sound upbeat.
亚历杭德罗说,“然后我们有两个星期的时间来寻找答案。”
“ All right, then.”
“...... 好吧,那就这样吧。 “
Martín’s expression was blank as he sheathed his blade.
Martín的表情是空白的,
“Don’t be late tomorrow morning, Alejandro.”
“明天早上不要迟到,
The next few days were filled with the hardest work Alejandro had ever done.
接下来的几天充满了亚历杭德罗所做过的最艰苦的工作.
He saddled horses, herded sheep, fixed fencing, and hauled feed.
他把马鞍、羊群、固定的栅栏和饲料都拿来了。
He made friends with an old sheepdog named Lucinda that followed him around like a long-lost sister.
他和一只叫露辛达的老牧羊犬交了朋友,像一个长期失去的妹妹一样跟着他走来走去.
In the hot afternoons, he would listen to the gauchos sing and tell stories while passing around mate prepared over a small fire.
在炎热的下午,他会听 gauchos唱歌和讲故事 同时路过 朋友准备了小火。
In the evenings, he would sit with his mother, who would ask, “What did you learn today?”
晚上,他和母亲坐在一起,母亲会问:“你今天学到了什么? “
Alejandro excitedly told her everything, but when he was done, tiredness crept back into his bones, and a well of sadness filled his heart.
亚历杭德罗激动地告诉她一切,但当他完成后,疲惫又沉浸入他的骨骼中,他心中充满了悲伤之井.
He didn’t yet know how to save the estancia.
他还不知道如何拯救Estancia。
Patagonia PACIFIC OCEAN ATLANTIC OCEAN Patagonia is a rural region located at the southern tip of South America.
巴塔哥尼亚州 太平洋、大洋洲 巴塔哥尼亚是位于南美洲南端的一个农村地区.
The region is shared by Argentina and Chile, with the Andes Mountains as its dividing line.
该区域由阿根廷和智利共有,安第斯山脉为分界线.
The Argentine side features flat, wild grasslands and deserts, while the Chilean side has ice-covered mountains and rainforest.
阿根廷一侧以平地,野生草地和沙漠为特色,而智利一侧则有被冰覆盖的山脉和雨林.
On the fourth day, Alejandro and Martín came across a guanaco with its leg stuck in one of the fences.
第四天,亚历杭德罗和马丁碰到了一只被腿卡住的瓜纳克.
The animal was terrified and worn out, weakly thrashing its long neck and thin legs.
这只动物被吓坏了 磨损了 颈部和腿都骨折了
Martín kneeled beside the animal, which was breathing heavily and watching him with large brown eyes.
Martín跪在动物的旁边,动物呼吸很重,用棕色的大眼睛看着他.
As Martín reached out with a small pair of wire cutters and snipped a few times, he talked to the animal calmly, like a doctor explaining a procedure to a child.
当马丁用一对小电线切割器伸出手,并吸了几次后,他和动物冷静地交谈,就像医生向孩子解释一个手术一样.
The guanaco, once released, climbed up and limped away as fast as it could.
瓜拿可人一旦被释放,就爬上来并尽可能快地跛走.
“These are wild animals,” Martín said as he repaired the hole.
Martín在修复洞口时说:“这些是野生动物”。
“They don’t understand fences.
他们不懂栅栏。
In the old days, we didn’t have any fences on the estancia.
过去,我们没有在埃斯坦西亚建立任何围栏。
We followed the flock all over the mountain.
我们跟着山上所有的羊群
It was harder to protect the sheep, but at least there was always enough grass.”
保护羊更难,但至少一直有足够的草. “
Alejandro was silent.
亚历杭德罗沉默了
Something churned in his mind, but he couldn’t figure out what it was exactly.
他的脑海里有些事,
That afternoon, as they drank mate, Alejandro listened as a gaucho told them about seeing a large puma hunting one of the flocks.
那天下午,当他们喝酒时,亚历杭德罗以大猩猩的口吻 告诉他们看到一只大美洲狮猎杀一只羊群
“I’ d never seen one so close to the main buildings,” he said.
他说, " 我从未见过靠近主要建筑物的人 " 。
“I frightened it away with a few shots.”
“我用几发子弹吓跑它。 “
“So you missed,” another gaucho said, and they all laughed.
“你错过了,”又一个高雄说,他们都笑了。
“She’s hungry,” Martín said quietly.
" 她饿了, " 马丁悄悄地说:
“The changes to the land affect us all.”
“土地的变化影响到我们所有人。 “
When Alejandro’s mother asked him what he had learned that day, he told her about the guanaco and the puma, but he didn’t feel the usual excitement.
亚历杭德罗的母亲问他当天学到了什么, 他告诉她瓜拿克和美洲狮的事,
Something felt strange, as if his brain were trying to tie together two wires that weren’t quite long enough.
他的大脑试图将两条线绑在一起,
Each night the well of sadness in his heart filled more and more.
每天晚上,他心中的悲伤之井充满了越来越多.
They did not have much time left.
他们的时间不多了。
Five days before Mr.
5天前,他刚离开
Somerset was due to return, Martín sent Alejandro on his own to seek out a sheep that had wandered away.
萨默塞特本该归来,马丁派亚历杭德罗独自去寻找已经流浪走的一头羊.
After a while, he saw the sheep moving through an opening in a rocky outcropping.
过了一阵子,他看见了羊在一片岩石外的地上穿过了开口.
“How did she get on the other side of that fence?”
“她是如何进入围栏的另一边的? “
he asked Lucinda, who barked and panted happily, bounding back and forth.
他问露辛达,谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫,谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁叫谁
Yet when they reached the big rocks, Lucinda suddenly refused to go through the opening.
然而当他们到达了大岩石时,露辛达突然拒绝穿过开口.
“Fine,” Alejandro said, “you wait here.”
“好的,”亚历杭德罗说,“你在这里等。 “
The passage was narrow, but he could easily squeeze through by turning to the side.
通道是狭长的,但他可以轻而易举地靠边挤过.
He quickly realized what had attracted the sheep: a small area of deep green grass dotted with wildflowers.
他很快地意识到了吸引了绵羊的东西:用野花点缀了一小片深绿色的草地.
The sheep was unhappy to leave her feast, but Alejandro managed to get her through the passage.
羊不高兴地离开了她的宴会,但亚历杭德罗设法让她通过通道.
Before he followed, he stopped to pick one of the flowers—a yellow-tongued porcelain orchid.
在他追随之前,他停下来取出一朵花——一朵黄色的瓷花兰.
He remembered his father bringing them to his mother after working on the estancia.
他回忆起他父亲在做Estancia后带给母亲的.
Back then, the orchids had been much more common, but these were the first Alejandro had seen since his father died.
当时,兰花已经更常见了,但这些是亚历杭德罗自他父亲去世后第一次见到.
He was about to leave when he noticed a sudden movement.
当他注意到突然的动向时,他正要离开.
A puma stood on a flat rock overlooking the patch of grass, staring at Alejandro with yellow eyes.
一只美洲狮站在平地上,俯瞰着草地的地段,用黄色的眼睛盯着亚历杭德罗.
It paced back and forth.
相去相续.
Alejandro returned the hunter’s gaze, clutching the flower in his hand like a weapon, slowly backing toward the opening.
Alejandro回放猎人的眼睛,
Then, as if giving up, the cat lay down with a low sigh, its eyes lazily half closing.
然后,仿佛放弃,猫会低声地躺下,眼睛懒得半闭.
Alejandro almost felt sorry for the beast.
亚历杭德罗几乎为野兽感到难过.
It had been hunting the sheep, and he had ruined its meal.
它一直在猎羊, 他毁了它的晚餐。
He squeezed his way through the tunnel as quickly as he could, not waiting to find out if the puma was willing to attack a human.
他尽可能快地挤出从地道走入的路来,不等待发现美洲狮是否愿意攻击人.
With his heart still pounding, Alejandro placed the flower in his pouch and lifted the bleating sheep over the fence.
心还一跳,亚历杭德罗将花放入口袋,将出血的羊抬过栅栏.
He finally felt safe when he reached the other side.
当他到达另一边时,他终于感到安全.
As he nudged his horse forward, he couldn’t push the blooming pasture and the puma from his mind.
他无法将开花的牧场和美洲狮推出脑海。
They were wild, strong, and healthy.
他们是野生的,强壮的,健康的。
The estancia was no longer a place for wild things, but instead a land that was controlled.
恒星不再是野生事物的场所 而是被控制的土地
The fences protected them, but they also kept the sheep from the rich pastures beyond.
栅栏保护了他们,但他们也把羊挡在了外的富饶牧场.
Alejandro imagined an estancia with no fences.
亚历杭德罗想象出一个没有栅栏的estancia.
Some of the sheep might fall victim to pumas, but the flock as a whole would survive and grow stronger.
有些羊可能会被美洲狮所害,但整个羊群会活下来并变得更强大.
He realized that he could tell his mother that he had truly learned something today.
他意识到他可以告诉他的母亲,他今天真的学到了一些东西.
Alejandro urged his horse into a gallop.
亚历杭德罗催促他的马骑入了跑道.
He had to talk to Martín and the other gauchos.
他只好和马丁和其他的食人族交谈.
It was time to return to the old ways.
今已回向旧道.
They could fix this.
他们可以解决这个问题。
There was still time.
还有时间呢