英语小达人 52 Into Ashes

 　　Into Ashes

　　化为灰烬

　　The summer of 2002 saw many forest fires. It had been a very dry year and forest fires were everywhere. One particular fire could not becontrolled and it destroyed a small housing community called Scenic¹ Hill. Luckily, the community had received a warning from the fire fighters; and the residents were able to escape but their homes and belongings² turned to ashes.

　　二零零二年夏天发生许多森林大火，那一年天气很干燥，到处都是森林大火，其中有一场火无法控制，烧毁了名为“观景山”的小型住宅社区，幸好社区接获消防员的警告，居民得以逃离，可是他们的家和财产全都化为灰烬。

　　Thirty-four homes out of fifty-eight burnt down. Many people lost everything and didn’t have any house insurance. The media covered the tragedy and donation funds were set up so people could give money to help out the homeless families.

　　五十八栋房屋中有三十四栋完全烧毁，许多人失去了一切，又没有房屋保险。媒体报道这则剧，成立捐款基金，让其他人可以捐钱帮助这些无家可归的人。

　　Local hotels gave free rooms and provided meals. Neighboring communities went through their belongings and packed up things like clothing, canned food, blankets, shoes and toys to donate to the families in need.

　　地方旅馆提供空房间和食物，邻近的社区检查手边的物资，打包衣服、罐头食品、毛毯、鞋子和玩具，捐赠给需要的人家。

　　The people of Scenic Hill may have lost their homes, but they did not lose their faith in humanity. With the help and generosity³ of others, they slowly began to build up their community again.

　　“观景山”的人们失去了他们的家，但却没失去对人性的信心，在其他人的协助与慷慨解囊之下，他们慢慢开始重建社区。

1 scenic   

adj.自然景色的，景色优美的

参考例句：

• The scenic beauty of the place entranced the visitors.这里的美丽风光把游客们迷住了。
• The scenic spot is on northwestern outskirts of Beijing.这个风景区位于北京的西北远郊。

2 belongings   

n.私人物品，私人财物

参考例句：

• I put a few personal belongings in a bag.我把几件私人物品装进包中。
• Your personal belongings are not dutiable.个人物品不用纳税。

3 generosity   

n.大度，慷慨，慷慨的行为

参考例句：

• We should match their generosity with our own.我们应该像他们一样慷慨大方。
• We adore them for their generosity.我们钦佩他们的慷慨。