1-37

 

37.

On Tuesday, the culminating day of the Jubilee¹, millions watched Granny go from Palace tochurch. A special thanksgiving service. She rode with Grandpa in a carriage of gold—all of it,every square inch, lustrous² gold. Gold doors, gold wheels, gold roof, and on top of it all a goldcrown, held aloft by three angels cast in glowing gold. The carriage was built thirteen years beforethe American Revolution, and still ran like a top. As it sped her and Grandpa through the streets,somewhere in the distance a massive choir³ blasted the coronation anthem⁴. Rejoice! Rejoice! Wedid! We did! For even the grumpiest anti- monarchists, it was hard not to feel at least onegoosebump.

There was a luncheon⁶ that day, I think, and a dinner party, but it all felt a bit anticlimactic⁷. Themain event, everyone acknowledged, had taken place the night before, in the gardens outsideBuckingham Palace—a performance by some of the greatest musical artists of the century. PaulMcCartney sang “Her Majesty⁸.” Brian May, on the roof, played “God Save the Queen.” Howmarvelous, many said. And how miraculous⁹ that Granny should be so hip¹⁰, so modern, that sheshould allow, indeed relish¹¹, all this modern rock.

Sitting directly behind her, I couldn’t help thinking the same thing. To see her tapping her foot,and swaying in time, I wanted to hug her, though of course I didn’t. Out of the question. I neverhad done and couldn’t imagine any circumstance under which such an act might be sanctioned.

There was a famous story about Mummy trying to hug Granny. It was actually more a lungethan a hug, if eyewitnesses¹² can be believed; Granny swerved¹³ to avoid contact, and the whole thingended very awkwardly, with averted¹⁴ eyes and murmured apologies. Every time I tried to picturethe scene it reminded me of a thwarted¹⁵ pickpocketing¹⁶, or a rugby tap-tackle. I wondered, watchingGranny rock out to Brian May, if Pa ever tried? Probably not. When he was five or six, Grannyleft him, went off on a royal tour lasting¹⁷ several months, and when she returned, she offered him afirm handshake. Which may have been more than he ever got from Grandpa. Indeed, Grandpa wasso aloof¹⁸, so busy traveling and working, he barely saw Pa for the first several years of his life.

As the concert went on and on, I began to feel tired. I had a headache from the loud music, andfrom the stress of the last few weeks. Granny, however, showed no signs of fading. Still goingstrong. Still tapping and swaying.

Suddenly, I looked closer. I noticed something in her ears. Something—gold?

Gold as the golden carriage.

Gold as the golden angels.

I leaned forward. Maybe not quite gold.

No, maybe it was more yellow.

Yes. Yellow ear plugs.

I looked into my lap and smiled. When I lifted my head again, I watched with glee as Grannykept time to music she couldn’t hear, or music she’d found a clever and subtle way of…distancing.

Controlling.

More than ever before, I wanted to give my Granny a hug.

 

1 jubilee   

n.周年纪念；欢乐

参考例句：

• They had a big jubilee to celebrate the victory.他们举行盛大的周年纪念活动以祝贺胜利。
• Every Jubilee,to take the opposite case,has served a function.反过来说，历次君主巡幸，都曾起到某种作用。

2 lustrous   

adj.有光泽的；光辉的

参考例句：

• Mary has a head of thick,lustrous,wavy brown hair.玛丽有一头浓密、富有光泽的褐色鬈发。
• This mask definitely makes the skin fair and lustrous.这款面膜可以异常有用的使肌肤变亮和有光泽。

3 choir   

n.唱诗班，唱诗班的席位，合唱团，舞蹈团；v.合唱

参考例句：

• The choir sang the words out with great vigor.合唱团以极大的热情唱出了歌词。
• The church choir is singing tonight.今晚教堂歌唱队要唱诗。

4 anthem   

n.圣歌，赞美诗，颂歌

参考例句：

• All those present were standing solemnly when the national anthem was played.奏国歌时全场肃立。
• As he stood on the winner's rostrum,he sang the words of the national anthem.他站在冠军领奖台上，唱起了国歌。

5 anti-   

pref.[前缀]表示反抗，排斥

参考例句：

• The car has many safety features,including anti - skid braking.这车配有许多特别安全装置，包括防滑制动器。
• The anti-aircraft units opened fire and hit two of the enemy planes.防空部队开炮，击中了两架敌机。

6 luncheon   

n.午宴，午餐，便宴

参考例句：

• We have luncheon at twelve o'clock.我们十二点钟用午餐。
• I have a luncheon engagement.我午饭有约。

7 anticlimactic   

adj. 渐降法的, 虎头蛇尾的

参考例句：

• Everything after the discovery of the murderer was anticlimactic. 找到谋杀者之后，人们对所有事情的兴趣都突减了。
• The conclusion of the movie was anticlimactic. 电影的结局真没劲。

8 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！

9 miraculous   

adj.像奇迹一样的，不可思议的

参考例句：

• The wounded man made a miraculous recovery.伤员奇迹般地痊愈了。
• They won a miraculous victory over much stronger enemy.他们战胜了远比自己强大的敌人，赢得了非凡的胜利。

10 hip   

n.臀部，髋；屋脊

参考例句：

• The thigh bone is connected to the hip bone.股骨连着髋骨。
• The new coats blouse gracefully above the hip line.新外套在臀围线上优美地打着褶皱。

11 relish   

n.滋味，享受，爱好，调味品；vt.加调味料，享受，品味；vi.有滋味

参考例句：

• I have no relish for pop music.我对流行音乐不感兴趣。
• I relish the challenge of doing jobs that others turn down.我喜欢挑战别人拒绝做的工作。

12 eyewitnesses   

目击者( eyewitness的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The examination of all the eyewitnesses took a week. 对所有证人的质询用了一周的时间。
• Several eyewitnesses testified that they saw the officers hit Miller in the face. 几位目击证人证明他们看见那几个警官打了米勒的脸。

13 swerved   

v.（使）改变方向，改变目的( swerve的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She swerved sharply to avoid a cyclist. 她猛地急转弯，以躲开一个骑自行车的人。
• The driver has swerved on a sudden to avoid a file of geese. 为了躲避一队鹅，司机突然来个急转弯。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 averted   

防止，避免( avert的过去式和过去分词 )； 转移

参考例句：

• A disaster was narrowly averted. 及时防止了一场灾难。
• Thanks to her skilful handling of the affair, the problem was averted. 多亏她对事情处理得巧妙，才避免了麻烦。

15 thwarted   

阻挠( thwart的过去式和过去分词 )； 使受挫折； 挫败； 横过

参考例句：

• The guards thwarted his attempt to escape from prison. 警卫阻扰了他越狱的企图。
• Our plans for a picnic were thwarted by the rain. 我们的野餐计划因雨受挫。

16 pickpocketing   

扒窃

参考例句：

• Beware of pickpockets [pickpocketing]! 谨防扒手。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• That said, pickpocketing, like all other categories of crime, has declined in the last decade. 有报道说，扒窃和其他种类的犯罪一样，在过去10年中有所减少。 来自时文部分

17 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

18 aloof   

adj.远离的；冷淡的，漠不关心的

参考例句：

• Never stand aloof from the masses.千万不可脱离群众。
• On the evening the girl kept herself timidly aloof from the crowd.这小女孩在晚会上一直胆怯地远离人群。