3-80

80.

The house was Xanadu. High ceilings, priceless art, beautiful swimming pool. Palatial¹, but above

all, ultra-safe. Better yet, it came with security, paid for by Tyler.

We spent those last days of March 2020 exploring, unpacking². Trying to get our bearings.

Halls, wardrobes, bedrooms, there seemed no end of spaces to discover, and niches³ for Archie to

hide.

Meg introduced him to everything. Look at this statue! Look at this fountain! Look at these

hummingbirds⁴ in the garden!

In the front hall was a painting he found especially interesting. He started every day locked on

to it. A scene from ancient Rome. We asked each other why.

No clue.

Within a week Tyler’s house felt like home. Archie took his first steps in the garden a couple

of months later, at the height of the global pandemic lockdown. We clapped, hugged him, cheered.

I thought, for a moment, how nice it would be to share the news with Grandpa or Uncle Willy.

Not long after those first steps Archie went marching up to his favorite painting in the front

hall. He stared at it, made a gurgle of recognition.

Meg leaned in for a closer look.

She noticed, for the first time, a nameplate on the frame.

Goddess of the hunt. Diana.

When we told Tyler, he said he hadn’t known. He’d forgotten the painting was even there.

He said: Gives me chills.

Us too.

1 palatial   

adj.宫殿般的，宏伟的

参考例句：

• Palatial office buildings are being constructed in the city.那个城市正在兴建一些宫殿式办公大楼。
• He bought a palatial house.他买了套富丽堂皇的大房子。

2 unpacking   

n.取出货物，拆包[箱]v.从（包裹等）中取出（所装的东西），打开行李取出( unpack的现在分词 )；拆包；解除…的负担；吐露（心事等）

参考例句：

• Joe sat on the bed while Martin was unpacking. 马丁打开箱子取东西的时候，乔坐在床上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They are unpacking a trunk. 他们正在打开衣箱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 niches   

壁龛( niche的名词复数 )； 合适的位置[工作等]； （产品的）商机； 生态位（一个生物所占据的生境的最小单位）

参考例句：

• Some larvae extend the galleries to form niches. 许多幼虫将坑道延伸扩大成壁龛。
• In his view differences in adaptation are insufficient to create niches commensurate in number and kind. 按照他的观点，适应的差异不足以在数量上和种类上形成同量的小生境。

4 hummingbirds   

n.蜂鸟( hummingbird的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Hummingbirds have discovered that nectar and pollen are very nutritious. 蜂鸟发现花蜜和花粉是很有营养的。
• Why do hummingbirds and gorillas both have backbones? 为什么蜂鸟和大猩猩都有脊骨？