Golden Fruit
艾伦·亚历山大·米尔恩 / A.A. Milne
Of the fruits of the year I give my vote to the orange. In the f?irst place it is a perennial—if not in actual fact, at least in the greengrocer’s shop. On the days when dessert is a name given to a handful of chocolates and a little preserved ginger, when macédome de fruits is the title bestowed on two prunes and a piece of rhubarb, then the orange, however sour, comes nobly to the rescue; and on those other days of plenty when cherries and strawberries and raspberries and gooseberries riot together upon the table, the orange, sweeter than ever, is still there to hold its own. Bread and butter, beef and mutton, eggs and bacon, are not more necessary to an ordered existence than the orange.
It is well know that the commonest fruit should be also the best. Of the virtues of the orange I have not room fully to speak. It has properties of health giving, as it cures inf?luenza and establishes the complexion. It is clean, for whoever handles it on its way to your table but handles its outer covering, its top coat, which is left in the hall. It is round, and forms an excellent substitute with the young for a cricket ball. The pips can be f?licked at your enemies, and quite a small piece of peel makes a slide for an old gentleman.
But all this would count nothing had not the orange such delightful qualities of taste. I dare not let myself go upon this subject. I am a slave to its sweetness. I grudge every marriage in that it means a fresh supply of orange blossom, the promise of so much golden fruit out short. However, the world must go on.
Yet with the orange we do live year in and year out. That speaks well for the orange. The fact is that there is an honesty about the orange which appeals to all of us. If it is going to be bad—for the best of us are bad sometimes—it begins to be bad from the outside, not from the inside. How many a pear which presents a blooming face to the world is rotten at the core. How many an innocent-looking apple, is harboring a worm in the bud. But the orange has no secret faults. Its outside is a mirror of its inside, and if you are quick you can tell the shopman so before he slips it into the bag.
一年四季，在众多水果中，我最喜欢橘子。首先，橘子四季不断——纵然这不是事实，至少在水果店是这样的。在某些时期，甜食只是几块巧克力和一点糖姜，而什锦水果则是两块梅子干和一片大黄，此刻的橘子，不管有多酸，都解了燃眉之急。到了水果盛产时期，餐桌上堆满了樱桃、草莓、山莓和醋栗，这时的橘子，要比以往更甜美，它仍在那里坚守着自己的岗位。在人们的日常生活中，与面包、黄油、牛羊肉、鸡蛋和咸肉相比，橘子一样是不可或缺的。
众所周知，最普通的水果往往也是最好的。橘子的优点，我怎么讲也讲不完：它有保健强身的功效，可以治愈流行性感冒，让人面色红润；它很干净，因为在上桌前，人们摸的只是它们的表皮，即橘子的外套，而那是要被剥下留在厅堂里的；橘子圆圆的，可以被孩子们当做板球来玩；橘子核可以用来弹射你的对手；一块小小的橘皮，则会令一位老绅士滑倒在地。
然而，假如橘子不是这么甜美可口，那么一切将毫无意义。对于这一点，我不忍由着性子谈论下去，我已经被它的甜美所征服。每举行一次婚礼，我都会心疼不已，因为这意味着又有很多橘子花要被摘下，又有很多有望收获的金色水果夭折了。但是，世间的一切仍然在进行着。
一年又一年，我们的生活不能没有橘子，这恰恰证明了橘子的优点，实际上，我们喜爱的正是橘子诚实的品质。假如橘子腐烂了——我们之中品质最优良的人有时也会变坏——它是从表面坏起，并不是从内部。外表娇嫩可口，而内部腐烂的梨子在世上多的是，一眼望去纯净无瑕而里面早已长了蛆虫的苹果又有多少呢？可是，橘子就没有缺点可以隐藏。它的外部就是内心的一面镜子，假如你眼光犀利，在售货员将坏橘子装入袋子之前，你就能及时告诉他了。
记忆填空
1. Bread and butter, beef and mutton, and bacon, are not necessary to an ordered existence than the orange.
2. Of the virtues of the I have not room fully to speak. It has properties of giving, as it cures inf?luenza establishes the complexion.
3. Yet with the orange we do year in and year out. That speaks well for the orange. The fact is there is an honesty about the orange which appeals to all of us. it is going to be bad—for the of us are bad sometimes—it begins to be bad from the , not from the inside.
佳句翻译
1. 一年四季，在众多水果中，我最喜欢橘子。
2. 橘子的优点，我怎么讲也讲不完。
3. 然而，假如橘子不是这么甜美可口，那么一切将毫无意义。
短语应用
1. Of the fruits of the year I give my vote to the orange.
give one’s vote to sb：投某人一票
2. Yet with the orange we do live year in and year out.
year in and year out：年复一年，一年又一年