一生必讀的英文經典散文
學習英語的過程中，我們應該多讀一些英文的散文，多瞭解一些地道的描述。下面是小編給大家帶來的，供大家欣賞。
：Love is just a thread 愛如絲線
Sometimes I really doubt whether there is love between my parents. Every day they are very busy trying to earn money in order to pay the high tuition for my brother and me. They don’t act in the romantic ways that I read in books or I see on TV. In their opinion, “I love you” is too luxurious for them to say. Sending flowers to each other on Valentine’s Day is even more out of the question. Finally my father has a bad temper. When he’s very tired from the hard work, it is easy for him to lose his temper.
有時候，我真的懷疑父母之間是否有真愛。他們天天忙於賺錢，為我和弟弟支付學費。他們從未像我在書中讀到，或在電視中看到的那樣互訴衷腸。他們認為”我愛你”太奢侈，很難說出口。更不用說在情人節送花這樣的事了。我父親的脾氣非常壞。經過一天的勞累之後，他經常會發脾氣。
One day, my mother was sewing a quilt. I silently sat down beside her and looked at her.
一天，母親正在縫被子，我靜靜地坐在她旁邊看著她。
“Mom, I have a question to ask you,” I said after a while.
過了一會，我說：”媽媽，我想問你一個問題。”
“What?” she replied, still doing her work.
“什麼問題?”她一邊繼續縫著，一邊回答道。
“Is there love between you and Dad?” I asked her in a very low voice.
我低聲地問道：”你和爸爸之間有沒有愛情啊?”
My mother stopped her work and raised her head with surprise in her eyes. She didn’t answer immediately. Then she bowed her head and continued to sew the quilt.
母親突然停下了手中的活，滿眼詫異地抬起頭。她沒有立即作答。然後低下頭，繼續縫被子。
I was very worried because I thought I had hurt her. I was in a great embarrassment and I didn’t know what I should do. But at last I heard my mother say the following words:
我擔心傷害了她。我非常尷尬，不知道該怎麼辦。不過，後來我聽見母親說：
“Susan,” she said thoughtfully, “Look at this thread.Sometimes it appears, but most of it disappears in the quilt. The thread really makes the quilt strong and durable. If life is a quilt, then love should be a thread. It can hardly be seen anywhere or anytime, but it’s really there. Love is inside.”
“蘇珊，看看這些線。有時候，你能看得見，但是大多數都隱藏在被子裡。這些線使被子堅固耐用。如果生活就像一床被子，那麼愛就是其中的線。你不可能隨時隨地看到它，但是它卻實實在在地存在著。愛是內在的
I listened carefully but I couldn’t understand her until the next spring. At that time, my father suddenly got sick seriously. My mother had to stay with him in the hospital for a month. When they returned from the hospital, they both looked very pale. It seemed both of them had had a serious illness.
我仔細地聽著，卻無法明白她的話，直到來年的春天。那時候，我父親得了重病。母親在醫院裡待了一個月。當他們從醫院回來的時候，都顯得非常蒼白。就像他們都得了一場重病一樣。
After they were back, every day in the morning and dusk, my mother helped my father walk slowly on the country road. My father had never been so gentle. It seemed they were the most harmonious couple. Along the country road, there were many beautiful flowers, green grass and trees. The sun gently glistened through the leaves. All of these made up the most beautiful picture in the world.
他們回來之後，每天的清晨或黃昏，母親都會攙扶著父親在鄉村的小路上漫步。父親從未如此溫和過。他們就像是天作之合。在小路旁邊，有許多美麗的野花、綠草和樹木。陽光穿過樹葉的縫隙，溫柔地照射在地面上。這一切形成了一幅世間最美好的畫面。
The doctor had said my father would recover in two months. But after two months he still couldn’t walk by himself. All of us were worried about him.
醫生說父親將在兩個月後康復。但是兩個月之後，他仍然無法獨立行走。我們都很為他擔心。
“Dad, how are you feeling now?” I asked him one day.
有一天，我問他：“爸爸，你感覺怎麼樣?”
“Susan, don’t worry about me.” he said gently. “To tell you the truth, I just like walking with your mom. I like this kind of life.” Reading his eyes, I know he loves my mother deeply.
他溫和地說：“蘇珊，不用為我擔心。跟你說吧，我喜歡與你媽媽一塊散步的感覺。我喜歡這種生活。”從他的眼神裡，我看得出他對母親的愛之深刻。
Once I thought love meant flowers, gifts and sweet kisses. But from this experience, I understand that love is just a thread in the quilt of our life. Love is inside, making life strong and warm..
我曾經認為愛情就是鮮花、禮物和甜蜜的親吻。但是從那一刻起，我明白了，愛情就像是生活中被子裡的一根線。愛情就在裡面，使生活變得堅固而溫暖。
：Appointment with love 愛的約會
Six minutes to six, said the clock over the information booth in New York’s Grand Central Station. The tall young Army lieutenant lifted his sunburned face and narrowed his eyes to note the exact time. His heart was pounding with a beat. In six minutes he would see the woman who had filled such a special place in his life for the past 13 month, the woman he had never seen, yet whose written words had sustained him unfailingly.
在紐約地鐵中心總站，諮詢處上方的時鐘指向了5點54分。年輕高大的陸軍中尉抬起黝黑的臉龐，眯著眼睛看上面的時間，一顆心激動得怦怦直跳，6分鐘後，他就要見到那個女人了——在過去的13個月裡一直佔據著他心靈某個特殊位置的女人。雖然他們素未謀面，但她的信卻一直是他的精神支柱。
Lieutenant Blandford remembered one day in particular, during the worst of the fighting, when his plane had been caught in the midst of a pack of enemy’s planes. In one of his letters he had confessed to her that he often felt fear, and only a few days before this battle he had received her answer: “Of course you fear…all brave men do. Next time you doubt yourself, I want you to hear my voice reciting to you: ‘yeah, though I walked through the Valley of the Shadow of Death, I will hear no evil: for thou art with me.’…” He had remembered, and it had renewed his strength.
布蘭福德中尉記得那天，戰鬥艱苦的時刻，他的飛機被敵機重重包圍。他曾在一封信裡對她坦言，他常會感到畏懼。就在戰鬥打響的前幾天，他收到了她的回信：“你當然會畏懼……勇士們都會那樣，下次你在不自信時，我希望你能聽到我為你朗誦的聲音：‘啊，是的，儘管我要走過死亡之谷，但我將勇往直前，因為你與我同在。’”他記得，正是那封信使他重新振作。
Now he was going to hear her real voice. Four minutes to six.
此時，他就要聽到她真實的聲音了，還有4分鐘就6點了。
A girl passed close to him, and Lieutenant Blandford started. She was wearing a flower, but it was not the little red rose they had agreed upon. Besides, this girl was only about 18, and Hollis Meynell had told him she was 30. “What of it?” he had answered. “I’m 32.” He was 29.
一個女孩走近他，布蘭福德中尉一驚。她戴著一朵花，但不是他們約好的那種紅玫瑰。這個女孩只有18歲左右，而霍麗絲.梅內爾告訴過他，她已30歲。“有什麼關係呢?”他還回信說，“我32歲”，其實他只有29歲
His mind went back to that book he had read in the training camp. Of Human Bondage it was; and throughout the book were notes in a woman’s handwriting. He had never believed that a woman could see into a man’s heart so tenderly, so understandingly. Her name was on the book plate: Hollis Meynell. He had got hold a New York City telephone book and found her address. He had written; she had answered. Next day he had been shipped out, but they had gone on writing.
他又想到了在訓練營時看過的一本書——《人性的枷鎖》，書裡有一個女人的批註。他難以相信，一個女人竟能如此透徹地讀懂男人的心，書籤上有她的名字：霍麗絲.梅內爾。於是他找來一本紐約市電話簿，查到了地址，給她寫信，並收到了回信。因為執行任務，第二天他就坐船離開了，但他們仍保持通訊。
For 13 months she had faithfully replied. When his letters did not arrive, she wrote anyway, and now he believed that he loved her and that she loved him.
13個月裡，她始終誠摯地給他回信，通常是他的信還未到，她的信就來了。因此，他深信，他們彼此深愛著。
But she had refused all his pleas to send him her photograph. She had explained:” If you’re feeling for me has any reality, what I look like won’t matter. Suppose I’m beautiful. I’d always been haunted by the feeling that you had been taking a chance on just that, and that kind of love would disgust me. Suppose I’m plain *** and you must admit that this is more likely***, then I’d always fear that you were only going on writing because you were lonely and had no one else. No, don’t ask for my picture. When you come to New York, you shall see me and then you shall make your decision.”
然而，她拒絕送他照片，並解釋說：“如果你是真心對我，我的外表並不重要。如果我長得很漂亮，我會認為，你是愛我的外表，那樣會另我很反感。如果我長相平凡***你必須承認這個更有可能***，就會擔心，你和我通訊，是因為內心孤獨，無人傾訴。別向我要照片。你來紐約時就可以看到我了，可以在那時做出某些決定。”
One minute to six…he put hard on a cigarette. Then Lieutenant Blandford’s heart leaped.
還有1分鐘就6點了……布蘭福德猛抽了一口煙，心跳更加快了。
A young woman was coming towards him. Her figure was long and slim; her blond hair lay back in curls over her delicate ears. Her eyes were as blue as flowers, her lips and chin had a gentle firmness. In her pale-green suit, she was like springtime come alive.
一位年輕的女士向他走來，她身材苗條，金黃的捲髮攏在小巧的耳後，雙脣紅潤，下巴精緻，眼睛深藍動人。她穿著淡綠色的西裝，渾身散發著青春的活力。
He started toward her, forgetting to notice that she was wearing no rose, and as he moved, a small, provocative smile curved her lips.
他開始向她走去，根本沒注意她是否戴著玫瑰花，他走近，看到她的嘴角浮起動人的微笑。
“Going my way, soldier?” she murmured. He made one step closer to her. Then he saw Hollis Meynell.
“問路嗎，軍人?”她輕輕地說。他又走近一步，接著，他看到了霍麗絲.梅內爾
She was standing almost directly behind the girl, a woman well past 40, her graying hair tucked under a worn hat. She was more than plump; her thick ankled feet were thrust into low-heeled shoes.
霍麗絲?梅內爾就站在這姑娘身後，一個40多歲的女人，灰白的頭髮塞在破舊的帽子下面，很胖，厚實的雙腳穿著低跟鞋。
But she wore a red rose on her rumpled coat. The girl in the green suit was walking quickly. Blandford felt as though he were being split into two, so keen was his desire to follow the girl, yet so deep was his longing for the woman whose spirit had truly companioned and upheld his own; and there she stood. He could see her pale, plump face was gentle and sensible; her grey eyes had a warm twinkle.
可是她那皺巴巴的外衣上彆著一朵紅玫瑰。綠衣女孩匆匆離去。布蘭福德心碎了，他多想跟著那女孩啊，然而他又真切地渴望見這個女人，是她的精神一直陪伴他，激勵他。她就站在那裡，蒼白豐滿的面龐，溫柔而理性，灰色的眼睛裡閃著溫和的光芒。
Lieutenant Blandford did not hesitate. His fingers gripped the worn copy of Human Bondage which was to identify him to her. This would not be love, but it would be something precious, a friendship that he had been and must ever be grateful…
布蘭福德沒有猶豫，他緊抓著那本破舊的《人性的枷鎖》，它是向她證明身份的依據。儘管這不會是愛情，但是一種珍貴的東西，是他曾經擁有並要感激的友情……
He squared his shoulders, saluted, and held the book out toward the woman, although even well while he spoke he fell the bitterness of disappointment. “I’m John Blandford, and you---you are Miss Meynell. May---may I take you to dinner?”
儘管因深深的失望而感到痛苦，布蘭福德仍擺正雙肩，敬了個禮，然後把書遞給那個女人：“我是約翰?布蘭福德，您——您是梅內爾女士吧，我可以——可以請您吃飯嗎?”
The woman smiled. “I don’t know what this is all about, son,” she answered. “That young lady in the green suit, she begged me to wear this rose on my coat. And she said that if you ask me to go out with you, I should tell you that she’s waiting for you in that restraint across the street. She said it was some kind of test.”
女人微笑著。“孩子，我不明白這是怎麼回事，”她說道，“那位穿綠衣服的年輕小姐請求我戴上這朵玫瑰，她說如果你請我一塊出去，就告訴你，她在對面的餐廳等你。她說這是一種考驗。”
：Words from the heart 最後的表白
Most people need to hear those "three little words" I love you. Once in a while, they hear them just in time.
大多數人需要聽到那“三個小字”——我愛你。有時他們就會在最需要的時候聽到。
I met Connie the day she was admitted to the hospice ward, where I worked as a volunteer. Her husband, Bill, stood nervously nearby as she was transferred from the gurney to the hospital bed. Although Connie was in the final stages of her fight against cancer, she was alert and cheerful. We got her settled in. I finished marking her name on all the hospital supplies she would be using, then asked if she needed anything.
我在康尼住進收容所病房的那天見到了她。我在那兒當義工。把她從輪床抬上病床時，她的丈夫比爾焦慮不安地站在旁邊。雖然康尼處於和癌症搏鬥的晚期，但她仍然神智清醒，精神愉快。我們把她安頓好。我在醫院提供給她使用的所有用品上標上她的名字，然後問她是否需要什麼。
"Oh, yes," she said, "would you please show me how to use the TV? I enjoy the soaps so much and I don't want to get behind on what's happening." Connie was a romantic. She loved soap operas, romance novels and movies with a good love story. As we became acquainted, she confided how frustrating it was to be married 32 years to a man who often called her "a silly woman."
“啊，是的，”她說，“請告訴我怎麼用電視好嗎?我非常喜歡肥皂劇，想隨時跟上進展情況。”康尼是個浪漫的人。她酷愛肥皂劇、浪漫小說和講述美好愛情故事的電影。隨著我們越來越熟，她向我吐露說，跟一個經常叫她“傻女人”的男人生活了32年有多麼沮喪。
"Oh, I know Bill loves me," she said, "but he has never been one to say he loves me, or send cards to me." She sighed and looked out the window at the trees in the courtyard. "I'd give anything if he'd say 'I love you,' but it's just not in his nature."
“唉，我知道比爾愛我，”她說道，“可是他從來不說他愛我，也不給我寄賀卡。”她嘆了口氣，朝窗外庭院裡的樹望去。“如果他說聲‘我愛你’，我願意付出一切，可這根本不是他的性格。”
Bill visited Connie every day. In the beginning, he sat next to the bed while she watched the soaps. Later, when she began sleeping more, he paced up and down the hallway outside her room. Soon, when she no longer watched television and had fewer waking moments, I began spending more of my volunteer time with Bill.
比爾每天都來探望康尼。一開始，康尼看肥皂劇，他就坐在床旁。後來，她睡的時候多了，比爾就在屋外走廊裡踱來踱去。不久，康尼不再看電視了，醒的時候也少了，我開始花更多的義工時間和比爾在一起。
He talked about having worked as a carpenter and how he liked to go fishing. He and Connie had no children, but they'd been enjoying retirement by traveling, until Connie got sick. Bill could not express his feelings about the fact that his wife was dying.
他談到他一直是個木工，他多麼喜歡釣魚。他和康尼沒有孩子，但他們四處旅遊，享受著退休生活，直到康尼得病。對他妻子病危這一事實，比爾無法表達他的感受。
One day, over coffee in the cafeteria, I got him on the subject of women and how we need romance in our lives; how we love to get sentimental1 cards and love letters.
一天，在自助餐廳喝咖啡時，我設法和比爾談起女人這個話題，談到生活中我們多麼需要浪漫，多想收到充滿柔情蜜意的卡片和情書。
"Do you tell Connie you love her?" I asked ***knowing his answer***, and he looked at me as if I was crazy.
“你跟康尼說你愛她嗎?”我明知故問。他瞧著我，就好像我有神經病。
"I don't have to," he said. "She knows I do!"
“我沒有必要說，”他說道。“她知道我愛她!”
"I'm sure she knows," I said, reaching over and touching his hands rough, carpenter's hands that were gripping the cup as if it were the only thing he had to hang onto "but she needs to hear it, Bill. She needs to hear what she has meant to you all these years. Please think about it."
“我肯定她知道，”我說。我伸出手，觸控著他那雙木工粗糙的手。這雙手緊握著杯子，似乎它是他需要依附的惟一東西——“可是她需要聽到它，比爾。她需要聽到所有這些年來她對你意味什麼。請你考慮考慮。”
We walked back to Connie's room. Bill disappeared inside, and I left to visit another patient. Later, I saw Bill sitting by the bed. He was holding Connie's hand as she slept. The date was February 12.
我們走回康尼的房間。比爾進了屋，我走開去看望另一個病人。後來，我看見比爾坐在床邊。康尼入睡了，他握著她的一隻手。那天是2月12日。
Two days later I walked down the hospice ward at noon. There stood Bill, leaning up against the wall in the hallway, staring at the floor. I already knew from the head nurse that Connie had died at 11 A.M..
兩天後的中午時分，我順著收容所病房過道向前走著。比爾站在那裡，靠著牆，凝視著地面。護士長已經告訴我，康尼在上午11點故去了。
When Bill saw me, he allowed himself to come into my arms for a long time. His face was wet with tears and he was trembling. Finally, he leaned back against the wall and took a deep breath.
比爾看見我後，讓我擁抱了他許久。他滿臉淚水，渾身顫抖。最後，他向後靠在牆上，深深地吸了一口氣。
"I have to say something," he said. "I have to say how good I feel about telling her." He stopped to blow his nose. "I thought a lot about what you said, and this morning I told her how much I loved her... and loved being married to her. You shoulda2 seen her smile!"
“我有話非說不可，”他說道。“我得說，對她說出來，感覺真是好極了。”他停下來擤鼻子。“你說的話我想了很多;今天早上我對她說我多麼愛她……我多麼珍惜和她結為夫妻。你真該看看她的笑容!”
I went into the room to say my own goodbye to Connie. There, on the bedside table, was a large Valentine card from Bill. You know, the sentimental kind that says, "To my wonderful wife... I love you."
我走進康尼的房間，親自去和她告別 。我看見，床頭桌上放著一張比爾給她的大大的情人節賀卡——就是那種充滿柔情蜜意的賀卡，上面寫著：“給我出色的妻子……我愛你。”