英语励志美文精华 6

Revelations on a Bomb Run

By Lloyd Jordan

One day while piloting a bomber¹ through the war skies of Europe, I came to believe in the immortality³ of man. There was not any melodrama⁴ attached to this awakening⁵. Only through the thousand details of a mind absorbed in a bomb run came the discovery of a single fact: “Know ye the truth, and the truth shall make ye free.”

Below me were the Alps, and the vision of Hannibal crossing them in his time of war flashed through my mind, followed in rapid succession by the remembrance of all the histories of wars. I looked at the bomber machinery⁶ about me and at the battle signs of destruction below and realized this was only one of the thousands of wars man has been engaged in, and still he has flourished. So then, like the warm sun and friendly heaven and God’s other features about me, man, too, must be permanent.

The warmth that came into the subzero cockpit with this divine realization⁷ made me know that here, at least for me, was the key to a happiness which had been missing before. The feeling of a day-to-day existence without hope for the tomorrow, changed to a sense of security and the knowledge of having a future. With this truth in mind, one cannot help but try to make a better world to live in.

This awakening came late to me, but with my children it will not be left to happenstance, for I have long since begun to show them the tying in of man’s immortality with the ageless evidences which are everywhere about us: the great artist’s glorious paintings of the heavens at sunrise and sunset; the delicate fragrance⁸ of a rose; the simple miracle of a newly born lamb; the massive majesty⁹ of snowcapped, purple mountains; the mysterious, many-faced sea hiding a thousands other worlds beneath its cloak; the twinkling lights from stars a billion miles away. They have learned these things are of God and are immortal², just as the music and the paintings of the old masters are God-given and ageless.

“But Daddy,” they have asked me, “the papers say the Atom Bomb will kill off the human race someday, is that so?” How certainly I can assure them now, believing in the imperishability of man as I do. People said that when the spear came into existence, and the bow and arrow, and guns and bullets, and planes and bombs. But there has been someone more powerful than all these forces, and so we are here today, greater in number, healthier in body, and more advanced in science and learning than ever.

Have patience with all this hysteria, I tell them. After all, mankind is only a youngster, like one of you. The Earth is an unknown millions of years old, while man is a mere¹⁰ 6,000 years of age. Mankind is still growing up, comparatively, and his growth can be likened to your own. Its like you and the neighboring children who have words and fight. Someone gets a black eye, but you make up and then you work and play together again, and as you grow more mature you fight less often because you become more intelligent. So will it be with the world.

In giving these simple facts to my children, I continually add to my own faith in mankind. I believe man is basically good in heart, spiritually indestructible, and his place in the sun is assured because he is in God’s image. I believe all these things, sincerely; but more important, my children believe them, for it is they who hold the combination to man’s future peace and happiness.

1 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

2 immortal   

adj.不朽的；永生的，不死的；神的

参考例句：

• The wild cocoa tree is effectively immortal.野生可可树实际上是不会死的。
• The heroes of the people are immortal!人民英雄永垂不朽！

3 immortality   

n.不死，不朽

参考例句：

• belief in the immortality of the soul 灵魂不灭的信念
• It was like having immortality while you were still alive. 仿佛是当你仍然活着的时候就得到了永生。

4 melodrama   

n.音乐剧；情节剧

参考例句：

• We really don't need all this ridiculous melodrama!别跟我们来这套荒唐的情节剧表演！
• White Haired Woman was a melodrama,but in certain spots it was deliberately funny.《白毛女》是一出悲剧性的歌剧，但也有不少插科打诨。

5 awakening   

n.觉醒，醒悟 adj.觉醒中的；唤醒的

参考例句：

• the awakening of interest in the environment 对环境产生的兴趣
• People are gradually awakening to their rights. 人们正逐渐意识到自己的权利。

6 machinery   

n.(总称)机械，机器；机构

参考例句：

• Has the machinery been put up ready for the broadcast?广播器材安装完毕了吗？
• Machinery ought to be well maintained all the time.机器应该随时注意维护。

7 realization   

n.实现；认识到，深刻了解

参考例句：

• We shall gladly lend every effort in our power toward its realization.我们将乐意为它的实现而竭尽全力。
• He came to the realization that he would never make a good teacher.他逐渐认识到自己永远不会成为好老师。

8 fragrance   

n.芬芳，香味，香气

参考例句：

• The apple blossoms filled the air with their fragrance.苹果花使空气充满香味。
• The fragrance of lavender filled the room.房间里充满了薰衣草的香味。

9 majesty   

n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权

参考例句：

• The king had unspeakable majesty.国王有无法形容的威严。
• Your Majesty must make up your mind quickly!尊贵的陛下，您必须赶快做出决定！

10 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。