High 1 · Reading series
Lesson 13 · One Hour without Plans
Audio track 13
Listen first
Listen once before opening the English passage.
Open the English passage and hover for word help
My Saturday schedule usually has no empty space. There is practice in the morning, homework in the afternoon, and messages to answer in between. Last weekend, practice ended early, and I had one free hour before my train.
I reached for my phone, then put it back in my bag. I walked into a small bookstore near the station. A display of old maps caught my attention. I found a map of our town from forty years ago and noticed that the river had a different path. The owner explained that the town had moved part of the walking path after a flood.
I did not become an expert in local history in one hour. I simply followed a question I had not planned to ask. On the train home, I photographed the modern river from the window and compared it with the old map in my memory.
An unscheduled hour can feel like time to fill. That day, it became time to notice something.
Check your understanding
After reading, state the main idea in one sentence and find a line that supports it.
Chinese translation
我的星期六通常排得满满的：上午训练，下午做作业，中间还要回复消息。上周末训练提前结束，离火车发车还有一小时空闲。
我伸手想拿手机，又把它放回包里，走进车站旁的小书店。一组旧地图吸引了我。我找到一张四十年前的本镇地图，发现河道与今天不同。店主解释说，洪水过后，镇上调整过一段步行小路。
一小时当然不能让我变成地方史专家。我只是顺着一个原本没打算问的问题走了下去。回家的车上，我从窗边拍下如今的河，再拿记忆里的旧地图与它比较。
一段没安排的时间，容易让人觉得非得找事填满。那天，我用它来注意到一件新鲜事。
Key words and expressions
Key terms have Chinese explanations. Hover over dotted words in the English passage for word help and pronunciation when available.
- empty space
- 空档；原本排满的星期六空出一小时。
- in between
- 在其间；回复消息夹在训练和作业之间。
- reach for
- 伸手去拿；主人公想拿手机。
- display
- 陈列；旧地图摆在书店里。
- catch one's attention
- 吸引注意；地图使他停下来看。
- path
- 路径；河与小路的位置曾变动。
- flood
- 洪水；店主说明调整路径的原因。
- follow a question
- 追随一个问题；顺着好奇心继续观察。
- unscheduled
- 未安排的；空出来的一小时。
- notice
- 注意到；发现河道不一样。
Background notes (Chinese)
旧地图记录某一时期的地貌和路线，今日景象可能不同。故事中的主人公没有急着下历史结论，而是把店主的解释与车窗外的河道联系起来，产生了进一步探究的兴趣。