21天读英文《海鸥乔纳森》-Day 17

乔纳森带学生在长者旁边飞行 被长者呵斥 但是也吸引了第八个学生

Day 17

① “Well sure, O.K. they’re Outcast,” said some of the younger gulls,“but hey, man, where did they learn to fly like that?”

“嗯，不错，对，他们是弃儿，”有些年轻的海鸥说，“可是，嘿，伙计，他们打哪儿学会这么个飞法儿的？”

② It took almost an hour for the Word of the Elder to pass through theFlock: Ignore them. The gull who speaks to an Outcast is himself Outcast. Thegull who looks upon an Outcast breaks the Law of the Flock, Gray-featheredbacks were turned upon Jonathan from that moment onward, but he didn’t appearto notice. He held his practice sessions directly over the Council Beach andfor the first time began pressing his students to the limit of their ability.

差不多过了一个小时，长者的话才在鸥群中传开：别理睬他们。跟弃儿说话的，他也要给赶出去当弃儿。朝弃儿看一眼的，就是违背了鸥群的法律。从那一刻起，海鸥们就把长满灰色羽毛的背朝向乔纳森，但他似乎并不理会。他干脆就在会议沙滩的上空讲课，进行教练，头一次逼着学生们施展全部才能。

③ “Martin Gull!” he shouted across the sky. “You say you knowlow-speed flying. You know nothing till you prove it!  FLY!”

“海鸥马丁，”他从空中喊道，“你不是说会低速飞行吗，马上飞给我们看，要不你就是瞎说！”

④So quiet little Martin William Seagull, startled to be caught under hisinstructor’s fire, surprised himself and became a wizard of low speeds. In thelightest breeze he could curve his feathers to lift himself without a singleflap of wing from sand to cloud and down again.

文静的小海鸥马丁·威廉被他导师的命令吓了一跳，但他真没想到，一自己竟变成了一个低速飞行的天才。在小得不能再小的风中，他没展动一下翅膀，光弯曲着羽毛，竟能从沙滩上起飞在冲云霄，再降落下来。

⑤ Likewise Charles-Roland Gull flew the Great Mountain Wind totwenty-four thousand feet, came down blue from the cold thin air, amazed andhappy, determined to go still higher tomorrow.

同样，海鸥查理士·罗兰德飞进大山风，到达二万四千英尺高空。上面的空气稀薄、寒冷，他降落时，浑身冻得发紫，又是吃惊，又是快乐，决心明天要飞得更高。

⑥Fletcher Seagull, who loved aerobatics like no one else, conquered hissixteen point vertical slow roll and the next day topped it off with a triplecartwheel, his feathers flashing white sunlight to a beach from which more thanone furtive eye watched.

比谁都喜欢做特技动作的海鸥弗莱契，胜利地完成了十六点垂直慢滚，第二天做完同一特技后，还连续横翻了三个斤斗，他的羽毛向海滩反射着白色阳光；而在沙滩上偷偷瞧着的，可不止一两只眼睛呢。

 ⑦Every hourJonathan was there at the side of each of his students, demonstrating,suggesting, pressuring, guiding. He flew with them through night and cloud andstorm, for the sport of it, while the Flock huddled miserably on the ground.

乔纳森每时每刻都在他学生的身边，进行示范、指点、鞭策和引导。他与他们一道飞行，穿越黑夜、云层和暴风雨，就像做游戏一样。而这时，整个鸥群却可怜地在地上挤作一堆。

⑧ When the flying was done, the students relaxed in the sand, and intime they listened more closely to Jonathan. He had some crazy ideas that theycouldn’t understand, but then he had some good ones that they could.

飞行结束，学生们就在沙滩上歇息；慢慢地，他们比较留神听乔纳森的话了。他有些很疯狂的想法，他们无法理解；但也有些想法很不错，他们能够理解。

⑨Gradually, in the night, another circle formed around the circle ofstudents a circle of curious gulls listening in the darkness for hours on end,not wishing to see or be seen of one another, fading away before daybreak.

渐渐地，到了夜间，学生们的圈子外面又围上了一个圈子，这些都是有好奇心的海鸥，他们在黑暗中可以连续不断地听几个小时，既不希望看见别的海鸥，也不希望被别的海鸥看见，不等天亮又都悄悄地溜走了。

·       ⑩ It was a month after the Return that the first gull of theFlock crossed the line and asked to learn how to fly. In his asking, Terrence /'terens/ Lowell Gull became a condemned bird, labeled Outcast; and theeighth of Jonathan’s students.

“还乡”后一个月，鸥群里有一只海鸥第一个越过界线，要求学习飞行。这么一要求，海鸥特兰斯·罗维尔立刻成了只罪鸟，被看作弃儿，同时也成了乔纳森的第八个学生。