VOA标准英语2012--Soccer Helps Haiti Earthquake Amputees Heal

Soccer Helps Haiti Earthquake Amputees Heal

At times, it doesn't look like a regular soccer field. It is someone's desperate home. It is not a manicured pitch - cattle sometimes saunter by - but the players are not regular soccer players, either.
They kick with the same leg they stand on. Goalies play with the only arm they have. These are members of Haiti's amputee soccer teams - men and women who lost limbs, almost all during the earthquake in 2010.
A balcony collapsed¹ on Judith Facile. She had two choices: amputation² or death. Soccer soothes³ her pain.
"Now I feel like I'm alive," said Facile. "Because, before that, after I lost my leg, I didn't have any hope for the future, even though I was walking on crutches⁴."
And, they are a sight to behold⁵. Beyond the normal bounds of balance. Team president Cedieu Fortilus says the players have changed the entire country's attitude about the disabled.
"When I see they are playing like that I'm so proud. I'm so proud," said Fortilus. "I think I'm doing a good job. I see so many people, even Haitian, even if they are crossing the street, they take time to look at them because they are doing something very strange. Something many Haitians have never seen in their life."
Off their crutches, they tend to blend in.
Each player is fitted with a state-of-the-art prosthetic for home use. Every centimeter of it is designed to mimic⁶ a real leg. Legs like these cost about $50,000 in the U.S. Here in Haiti, they are free."
Several private, non-profit organizations in the United States fund the team and prosthetics for all Haitians who need them.
The team name, Zaryen, is Creole for tarantula, a spider that can function without a limb.
"Soccer has taught me to do a lot of things on one leg that I wasn't used to doing before. I feel comfortable when I'm playing," noted⁷ player Cindy Orange.
Team Zaryen is showing the world not what its players can't do without two legs, but what they can do with just one.

1 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

2 amputation   

n.截肢

参考例句：

• In ancient India,adultery was punished by amputation of the nose.在古代印度，通奸要受到剖鼻的处罚。
• He lived only hours after the amputation.截肢后，他只活了几个小时。

3 soothes   

v.安慰( soothe的第三人称单数 )；抚慰；使舒服；减轻痛苦

参考例句：

• Fear grasps, love lets go. Fear rankles, love soothes. 恐惧使人痛心，爱使痛苦减轻。 来自互联网
• His loe celebrates her victories and soothes her wounds. 他的爱庆祝她的胜利，也抚平她的创伤。 来自互联网

4 crutches   

n.拐杖, 支柱 v.支撑

参考例句：

• After the accident I spent six months on crutches . 事故后我用了六个月的腋杖。
• When he broke his leg he had to walk on crutches. 他腿摔断了以后，不得不靠拐杖走路。

5 behold   

v.看，注视，看到

参考例句：

• The industry of these little ants is wonderful to behold.这些小蚂蚁辛勤劳动的样子看上去真令人惊叹。
• The sunrise at the seaside was quite a sight to behold.海滨日出真是个奇景。

6 mimic   

v.模仿，戏弄；n.模仿他人言行的人

参考例句：

• A parrot can mimic a person's voice.鹦鹉能学人的声音。
• He used to mimic speech peculiarities of another.他过去总是模仿别人讲话的特点。

7 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。