365个英语简短小故事-281. He Goes to War

Roland was a carpenter in Virginia. He and Sheila had three kids—two boys and baby Jessica. The baby had been in and out of the hospital for the last year because of infections and other problems. She was very weak and sick. The doctors were not confident that she would live another year.

Taking care of Jessica was expensive. The family was deep in debt. Roland, an independent subcontractor, had medical insurance, but he had very high deductibles.

Things were bad. Roland saw no light at the end of this tunnel. Then he saw an ad in the newspaper: “Security guards/contract workers wanted. $100,000 a year. First $80,000 tax free. $20,000 bonus for extending¹ contract an extra year.” He called the number. The line was busy, but he kept calling and finally got through. He was worried that the jobs were all taken, but they told him plenty of jobs were still available. They said they would give him two weeks of training in Texas. Then they would fly him to Iraq for his assignment.

Roland told Sheila he had to take this job. He knew it was dangerous; he might get injured or killed, but the money was too good. Plus, the family would have full medical benefits, which would enable² the baby to get the care she needed. Roland said if he survived the first year, he would probably sign up for the bonus and a second year.

Sheila was worried. She asked, “What if you get killed? What are we going to do without you?”

“You can’t think like that, honey,” he said. “You’ve got to think positive. Think about how well off we’ll be in two or three years after I bring back all that money. This is the best thing I could do for this family.”

Sheila hugged him and sobbed³. “I don’t want you to go.”

Roland flew to Houston five days later.

 

1 extending   

v.（空间、时间等）延伸，延续( extend的现在分词 )；伸展；给予；延长

参考例句：

• We are extending the radio network. 我们正在扩大广播网。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A romance extending over several years was culminated. 一场数年之久的恋爱就此圆满告终。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 enable   

vt.使能够；使可以；使成为可能

参考例句：

• Only teamwork will enable us to get the job done on time.只有团结一致，我们才能按时完成这项工作。
• This will enable China to go a step further in grain production.这是中国粮食生产再上新台阶的巨大动力。

3 sobbed   

哭泣，啜泣( sob的过去式和过去分词 )； 哭诉，呜咽地说

参考例句：

• She sobbed out the story of her son's death. 她哭诉着她儿子的死。
• She sobbed out the sad story of her son's death. 她哽咽着诉说她儿子死去的悲惨经过。