每天一点英文 01 paving a brilliant way

01 paving a brilliant way

By Barack Obama

Tonight is a particular honor for me, let’s face it; my presence on stage is pretty unlikely. My father was a foreign student, born and raised in a small village in Kenya. He grew up herding¹ goats, went to school in a tin-roof shack². His father, my grandfather, was a cook, a domestic servant to British.

But my grandfather had lager dreams for their son. Through hard work and perseverance³ my father got a scholarship to study in a magical place: America that shone as a beacon⁴ of freedom and opportunity to so many who had come before.

While studying here, my father met my mother. She was born in a town on the other side of the world. Her father was a oil rigs and farms through most of the depression. The day after Pearl Harbor, my grandfather joined Patton’s army, marched across Europe. Back home, my grandmother raised a baby and went to work on a bomber⁵ assembly line. After the war, they studied on the GI Bill, bought a house through FHA, and later moved to west, all the way to Hawaii, in search of opportunity.

And they, too, had big dreams for their daughter, a common dream, born of two continents. My parents shared not only an improbable love; they shared an abiding⁶ faith in the possibilities of this nation.

They would give me a African name, Barack, or “blessed，” believing that in a tolerant America your name is no barrier to success. They imagined me going to the best schools in the land, even though they weren’t rich, because in a generous America you don’t have to achieve your potential. They are both passed away now. Yet, I know that, on this night, they look down on me with great pride.

1 herding   

中畜群

参考例句：

• The little boy is herding the cattle. 这个小男孩在放牛。
• They have been herding cattle on the tableland for generations. 他们世世代代在这高原上放牧。

2 shack   

adj.简陋的小屋，窝棚

参考例句：

• He had to sit down five times before he reached his shack.在走到他的茅棚以前，他不得不坐在地上歇了五次。
• The boys made a shack out of the old boards in the backyard.男孩们在后院用旧木板盖起一间小木屋。

3 perseverance   

n.坚持不懈，不屈不挠

参考例句：

• It may take some perseverance to find the right people.要找到合适的人也许需要有点锲而不舍的精神。
• Perseverance leads to success.有恒心就能胜利。

4 beacon   

n.烽火，（警告用的）闪火灯，灯塔

参考例句：

• The blink of beacon could be seen for miles.灯塔的光亮在数英里之外都能看见。
• The only light over the deep black sea was the blink shone from the beacon.黑黢黢的海面上唯一的光明就只有灯塔上闪现的亮光了。

5 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。

6 abiding   

adj.永久的，持久的，不变的

参考例句：

• He had an abiding love of the English countryside.他永远热爱英国的乡村。
• He has a genuine and abiding love of the craft.他对这门手艺有着真挚持久的热爱。