【導(dǎo)讀】學(xué)習(xí)外語是我一生中最艱苦也是最有意義的經(jīng)歷之一。雖然時(shí)常遭遇挫折，但卻非常有價(jià)值。我學(xué)外語的經(jīng)歷始于初中的第一堂英語課。老師很慈祥耐心，時(shí)常表揚(yáng)學(xué)生。由于這種積極的教學(xué)方法，我踴躍回答各種問題，從不怕答錯(cuò)。到了高中后，我渴望繼續(xù)學(xué)習(xí)英語。然而，高中時(shí)的經(jīng)歷與以前大不相同。我不僅失去了回答問題的樂趣，而且根本就不想再用英語說半個(gè)字。好在這種情況沒持續(xù)多久。不過情況卻遠(yuǎn)不盡如人意。我開始產(chǎn)生一種畏懼感。雖然原因與高中時(shí)不同，但我卻又一次不敢開口了。直到幾年后我有機(jī)會(huì)參加遠(yuǎn)程英語課程，情況才有所改善。這種課程的媒介是一臺(tái)電腦、一條電話線和一個(gè)調(diào)制解調(diào)器。網(wǎng)上學(xué)習(xí)并不比普通的課堂學(xué)習(xí)容易。它需要花許多的時(shí)間，需要學(xué)習(xí)者專心自律，以跟上課程進(jìn)度。我盡力達(dá)到課程的最低要求，并按時(shí)完成作業(yè)。我隨時(shí)隨地都在學(xué)習(xí)。不管去哪里，我都隨身攜帶一本袖珍字典和筆記本，筆記本上記著我遇到的生詞。

　　

【正文】 around so customers can read them while waiting for their appointments. 她還在店里放一些書籍和其他出版物，供顧客等候時(shí)閱讀。 It39。s amazing how many people she has educated on the job. 她在工作的同時(shí)使許許多多人受到了教育，這一點(diǎn)著實(shí)讓人贊嘆。 Recently, the work began helping hair stylists throughout the southeast set up similar programs in their shops. 最近，這一教育網(wǎng)絡(luò)機(jī)構(gòu)已開始幫助整個(gè)美國東南部的發(fā)型設(shè)計(jì)師們?cè)谒麄兊拿腊l(fā)店里實(shí)施類似計(jì)劃。 The hair stylists are also valuable resources in spreading information to their schools, munity groups, and churches. 他們也是向?qū)W校、社區(qū)組織和教堂傳播信息的有價(jià)值的資源。 The anization has developed several techniques useful to other groups doing similar work. 這一組織還總結(jié)出了一些對(duì)其他從事同樣工作的團(tuán)體頗有裨益的方法。 While no one way of winning the war against AIDS exists, the work shares these lessons learned in its battle against AIDS: 盡管還沒有一種能戰(zhàn)勝艾滋病的方法，但這一網(wǎng)絡(luò)機(jī)構(gòu)在與艾滋病斗爭中獲得了以下經(jīng)驗(yàn)： Speak to your munity in a way they can hear. 以社區(qū)居民能接受的方式與他們交談 Many munities have a low literacy rate, making impossible passing out AIDS literature and expecting people to read it. 許多社區(qū)的居民受教育比例低，這使得向他們散發(fā)艾滋病資料、希望他們自己閱讀這一做法不切實(shí)際。 To solve this problem, ask people in the munity who can draw well to create lowliteracy AIDS education publications. 為解決這一問題，需要請(qǐng)一些善于繪畫 的人來編寫適合于教育程度低的居民閱讀的艾滋病教育圖書。 These books use simple, handdrawn pictures of sad faces and happy faces to illustrate ways people can prevent AIDS. 這些書采用簡單的、手工繪制的“憂傷的臉”和“幸福的臉”等圖畫，說明防止感染艾滋病的方法。 They also show people who look like those we need to educate, since people can relate more when they see familiar faces and language they can understand. 這些書也展示一些看上去同那些需要接受教育的人很相似的圖片。當(dāng)居民們看到熟悉的面孔 14 和能夠理解的語言時(shí)，就會(huì)發(fā)表更多的議論和看法。 As a result, such books actually have more effect in the munities where they are used than government publications, which cost thousands of dollars more to produce. 這樣一來，這些書在使用它們的社區(qū)里所產(chǎn)生的影響要比政府出版的書產(chǎn)生的影響大，而政府出版的書籍成本要高出數(shù)千美元。 Train teenagers to educate their peers. 培訓(xùn)青少年去教育自己的同齡人 Because AIDS is spreading fastest among teenagers in the rural South, p20the stylists have established an AIDS Busters program which trains youth from 8 to 26 to go into the munity and teach AIDS 101 to their peers. 由于艾滋病在南部農(nóng)村地區(qū)的青少年當(dāng)中傳播速度最快，發(fā)型設(shè)計(jì)師們?cè)O(shè)立了一個(gè)稱為“艾滋病克星”的項(xiàng)目，培訓(xùn) 8 到 26 歲的青少年，讓他們到社區(qū)給同齡人上“艾滋病 101”課程。 They make it simple and explain the risk of catching AIDS to friends their own age much better than an adult can. 這些青少年使這門課程變得簡單易學(xué)，在向他們的同齡朋友解釋感染艾滋病的危險(xiǎn)性時(shí)，他們干得比成年人出色得多。 They also play a vital role in helping parents understand the types of peer pressure their children experience. 他們?cè)趲椭改咐斫夂⒆铀?jīng)受的各種來自于同齡人的壓力方面也起著重要作用。 Redefineat risk to include women from different backgrounds and marital status. 對(duì)“存在危險(xiǎn)”這一概念重新界定，從而把不同背景、不同婚姻狀況的婦女都包括進(jìn)去 One woman39。s doctor told her she was not at risk for AIDS because she was married and didn39。t use drugs. 一位婦女的醫(yī)生對(duì)她說她不存在染上艾滋病的危險(xiǎn)，因?yàn)樗呀?jīng)結(jié)婚，而且不吸毒。 Such misinformation plagues the medical establishment 這類錯(cuò)誤觀念困擾著醫(yī)療機(jī)構(gòu)。 According to the Centers for Disease Control, women will soon make up 80 percent of those diagnosed with HIV. 根據(jù)疾病控制中心的預(yù)測(cè)，女性將占感染艾滋病 病毒人數(shù)的 80% The stylists also emphasize that everyone is at risk and that all of us have a right to protect ourselves— regardless of marriage status. 發(fā)型設(shè)計(jì)師們也強(qiáng)調(diào)每個(gè)人都存在著危險(xiǎn)， 所以我們每個(gè)人都有權(quán)保護(hù)自己 —— 無論結(jié)婚與否。 These lessons are not the only olutions to the crisis, but until there is a cure for AIDS, educationrepresents the only safe measure to guard against the virus. 這些經(jīng)驗(yàn)不是解決艾滋病危機(jī)的唯一方法，但在找到治療艾滋病的方法之前，教育不失為預(yù)防感染艾滋病病毒的唯一安全措施。 Like no other plague before, the AIDS epidemic threatens to wipe out an entire generation and leave another without parents. 和以前其他傳染病不同，艾滋病這一傳染性疾病有可能奪去一代人的生命，從而使另一代人失去雙親。 We must not let cultural, racial, or social barriers distract us from the job that must be done. 因而我們決不能讓文化、種族和社會(huì)的障礙阻止我們專心從事我們必須做的工作。 15 Nor can we let political inefficiency stop us from our task. 我們也不能因?yàn)檎ぷ餍实投艞壩覀兊墓ぷ鳌? This is an undeclared war that everyone must sign up for in order for us to win. 這是一場(chǎng)不宣而戰(zhàn)的戰(zhàn)爭，我們每個(gè)人都必須參加，只有這樣我們才能取得勝利。 We simply cannot let people continue to die because we don39。t feel fortable talking about AIDS. 我們絕 對(duì)不能因?yàn)檎務(wù)摪滩?huì)使我們感到難受，而聽任人們繼續(xù)被艾滋病奪去生命。 Everyone must bee an educator and learn to live. 每個(gè)人都必須成為教育者，必須學(xué)會(huì)生存。 Unit 6 The Trashman 垃圾工 Saturday, April 7 Steve and I hauled trash for four solid hours continuously, except for about five minutes when we stopped to talk. 我和史蒂夫已拖運(yùn)垃圾整整四個(gè)小時(shí)了，中間只停下來說了約五分鐘的話。 My shoulder hurt wickedly each time I put another full barrel on it, and my legs occasionally trembled as I was heading to the street. But the rest of me said, Go, trashman, go. 每次我將滿滿的一桶垃圾扛上肩，肩膀就痛得厲害，有時(shí)候扛著垃 圾朝街上走，腿都打顫，可我心里卻對(duì)自己說：“挺住，垃圾工，要挺住?！? I could not have imaged there would be joy in this. 我原本就沒有想過這工作會(huì)有什么快樂可言。 Dump. Lift. Walk. Lift. Walk. The hours flew by. 倒、扛、走、扛、走。時(shí)間過得飛快。 Saturday meant most adults were at home on the route. 星期六意味著一路上大多數(shù)成年人會(huì)呆在家里。 So were schoolage children. 上學(xué)的孩子也一樣。 I thought this might mean more exchanges as I made the rounds today. 我心里琢磨，這可能意味著我挨家挨戶收垃圾時(shí)可以和人們多搭上幾句話了。 Many people were outdoors working in their gardens or greenhouses. 很多人在花園里或花房里干活兒。 Most looked approachable enough. 多數(shù)人看上去是可以說說話的。 There wasn39。t time for lengthy talks but enough to exchange greetings that go with civilized ways. 雖沒有工夫聊很久，但問候幾句以示禮貌還是有時(shí)間的。 That is where I got my shock. 但我吃驚地發(fā)現(xiàn)并不是這么回事。 I said hello in quite a few yards before the message registered that this wasn39。t normally done. 直到我在幾家院子里問候了幾次以后，才意識(shí)到這么做是不常見的。 Occasionally, I got a direct reply from someone who looked me in the eye, smiled, and asked How are you? or Isn39。t this a nice day? 16 偶爾，有人也會(huì)看著我，微笑一下，對(duì)我說一聲“你好”，或者“今天天氣真好”。 I felt human then. 這時(shí) ，我還是感到有人情味兒。 But most often the response was either nothing at all, or a surprised stare because I had spoken. 可多數(shù)情況下，人們的反應(yīng)要么是不理我，要么是因?yàn)槲疫@個(gè)垃圾工竟然也和他們說話而驚訝地盯著我看。 One woman in a hou